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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24915901">A Little Destiny, a Little Fate, and What's Written in the Stars</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ecanus0130/pseuds/Ecanus0130'>Ecanus0130</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Brave (2012), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Crossover, F/M, Fate &amp; Destiny, Friendship, Humor, Mystery, Reincarnation, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 04:27:40</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>159,435</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24915901</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ecanus0130/pseuds/Ecanus0130</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Fate is a funny thing, it can be mysterious, it can be illusive, but it's always there. Some people spend their whole lives chasing it, while others try to avoid it. But sometimes we meet our fate on the very road that we take to avoid it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Merida (Disney)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>60</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Prologue</p><p>The clydesdale barreled through the forest of Dunbroch, his heavy hooves striking the ground with frantic force. The rider urged him on, steering the young horse through the rough terrain of the highlands with familiarity and determination. She knew the way like the back of her hand.</p><p>She raced through the trees until she reached the highest cliff overlooking the vast ocean. She pulled back hard on the reigns, bringing the majestic horse to a sudden halt. Quickly she dismounted and ran to the cliff's edge. She stood silently gazing out to sea, as she scanned the horizon. Her sky blue eyes came to rest on the five Viking ships that were moving further away from the stony shore.</p><p>The wind blew back the hood of her cloak revealing her long unruly red curls. She gazed intently upon the longships, recognizing the ornate dragon emblem upon their red canvas sails. As she watched the ships descent she reached up to the iron pendent that hung around her delicate neck and held it close to her heart as she looked on, searching the boats for the face she longed for.</p><p>"Tha mo Chris's a dol leat," she whispered into the wind, "my heart goes with you."</p><p>Aboard the largest of the longships, a young man stood silently at the stern, looking back at the green land as it slowly shrank behind them. His deep green eyes were set firmly upon the cliffs. His heart froze the moment he saw her. She stood on the highest cliff gazing in the ship's direction, her unmistakable red curls blowing in the wind behind her. His breath caught in his throat as he reached for the pendent that hung around his own neck and held it firmly against his heart.</p><p>"Jeg forlater hjertet mitt med def," he whispered in his native tongue, "I leave my heart with you."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Family Heirloom</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 1</p><p>"Once upon a time, there was a lovely princess. She was stolen away by a dragon sent by an evil witch. She was locked away in the highest room, of the tallest tower, in a castle far away from her home. The castle that was her prison was guarded by the terrible fire-breathing dragon."</p><p>...</p><p>Three red-haired boys lay piled in one bed, listening intently as their mother told them a bedtime story.</p><p>...</p><p>"Many a brave knight had attempted to free the poor helpless maiden from her dreadful prison, but none prevailed. So the princess waited in the dragon's keep for the day her prince, a knight in shining armor would come to slay the beast and set her free."</p><p>...</p><p>"Aye!" The bedroom door suddenly burst open, causing all three boys to jump and nearly tumble from the bed in sudden fear. All three breathed a sigh of relief as their sister entered the room and took over their mother's story.</p><p>"But her prince proved a wee lamb in the face of the dragon. The dragon burned him alive right where he stood. So the princess had to escape on her own."</p><p>Merida leapt atop the bed and ripped the sheets from under the boys causing them to tumble over in a fit of giggles. She quickly looped the sheet over the hanging chandelier and dramatically swung to the bed across the room.</p><p>"She escaped from her tower..." Merida carefully walked along the edge of the bed as if it were a thin wall.</p><p>"She leapt from the high wall and landed in the courtyard!"</p><p>Merida leapt from the bed and landed in the middle of the room on one knee. The boys giggled excitedly as they all tumbled forward to see what their sister would do next.</p><p>Elinor shook her head in amusement of her daughter's dramatic antics.</p><p>"There she was, in the midst of her terrible scaly captor! The dragon glared at the princess, but the princess glared right back!" Slowly Merida stood glaring defiantly at her invisible foe.</p><p>"Just as the dragon went for her, the princess rolled out of the way." Merida instantly acted out her tale.</p><p>"She pried the sword from the prince's cold dead hand and slayed the beast!" Merida plunged her invisible sword through the imaginary dragon's heart. The boys hooted and hollered with excitement.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor interjected firmly while trying to hold back a laugh, "must ye rile them up before bed?" Merida looked to her mother and then to her brothers who were now slaying each other in dramatic fashion with their own imaginary swords. Merida stifled a giggle.</p><p>"Sorry mum," she replied in amusement, "I'll get the wee devils to bed." Elinor smiled at her daughter.</p><p>"Thank ye dear," Elinor replied as she stood and headed for the door.</p><p>"Oh and Merida," she went on.</p><p>"Aye mum," Merida said.</p><p>"Meet me in the study when yer finished," Elinor replied, "yer father and I have something for ye." Merida nodded as her mother exited and closed the door behind her.</p><p>"Alright boys," Merida said firmly, "that's enough bloodshed for tonight, to bed with ye now!"</p><p>—</p><p>Later that night</p><p>Merida headed to the study as her mother had instructed, but she found the room empty at the moment. She lazily walked about the room, glancing at the shelves of books and the paintings and tapestries that lined the walls.</p><p>She paused as she passed the completed tapestry of her family and smiled. It had been almost four years since the bear incident and a lot had changed since the bond between mother and daughter had been mended. Merida and her mother had never been closer. Though they still had their squabbles here and there, they now were far and few between.</p><p>Of course she still had to suffer through princess lessons in preparation for her eventual and hopefully distant assent to the throne. But she had found that her mother was much more lax in her lessons and much more accepting of who Merida was. Elinor was less intent on molding Merida into someone that she just wasn't meant to be.</p><p>Though Merida still was somewhat hesitant of her inevitable future as the Queen of Dunbroch, she had come to accept her fate. She was intent on ruling in her own way when the time eventually came.</p><p>She sighed heavily as she paused before the grand fireplace. In her boredom she grabbed the poker from it's holder and began to stir the ash of the fire. She turned suddenly with poker in hand as if it were a sword. She quickly dodged and parried her invisible opponent with expert precision. She paused suddenly, pointing her "sword" straight at the large painting above the fireplace.</p><p>The painting depicted her great great grandmother, Queen Mairead the first born queen of Dunbroch. Merida dropped her arm at her side, stood up tall and bowed her head slightly.</p><p>"M'lady," she said politely as she dropped the poker back in it's place.</p><p>The image of the past queen in her younger days was beautiful. Mairead was regal and elegant, the perfect image of a lady and queen. It was a wonder to Merida that she had been named for her. She was nothing like her namesake aside from a striking resemblance and the same fiery red hair.</p><p>Merida simply could not see herself being even half as lady like or proper as her predecessor seemed to be.</p><p>"Beautiful isn't she." Merida turned to find her mother standing beside her.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied gazing once more up at the painting.</p><p>"A fair and noble queen she was," Elinor replied.</p><p>"Did ye know her," Merida asked.</p><p>"No, she passed long before yer father and I were betrothed," Elinor replied,"but from what I've read of her she was quite an inspiration. Ye should feel proud to be of her bloodline."</p><p>"Bet she was a proper lady," Merida replied.</p><p>"Aye, that she was," Fergus' voice echoed into the room, "and a feisty one at that." He walked up beside his wife and daughter and gazed lovingly up at the painting of his beloved great grandmother.</p><p>"That woman would tell ye like it was, whether ye liked it or not," Fergus chuckled, "even when my father was king, she wouldn't hesitate to call him a dunce if she didn't agree with him." Merida marveled.</p><p>"Even though I didn't know her long," Fergus replied, "my memories of her will last a lifetime."</p><p>"Were ye close then," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Aye," Fergus replied, "I loved her so."</p><p>"I loved her stories best of all," Fergus replied, with a nostalgic look on his face, "they were exciting and full of adventure...I thought that woman would live forever." Fergus turned from the painting and gazed lovingly at his daughter.</p><p>"Ye remind me of her so much lass," Fergus smiled.</p><p>"Because of my red hair," Merida replied.</p><p>"Aye," her father chuckled, "and yer fiery spirit!" Merida smiled brightly at her father's comment.</p><p>"We have something for ye, Merida," Elinor interrupted.</p><p>"Aye," Fergus remembered. He walked over to a wooden chest at the opposite end of the room. He opened it and carefully pulled forth a small wooden box and brought it over to Merida.</p><p>"This was your great great nana's most prized possession." He opened the box, revealing a hand carved oblong silver pendent. Merida gazed at it as she carefully lifted the pendent from the box. The pendent shone like silver but it was much heavier, it was forged in iron. Upon it was carved an intricate symbol of two hearts interwoven into a celtic knot. She recognized it as the Celtic symbol for soul mates. As she turned the pendent over in her fingers she found a second symbol carved on the back that was foreign to her. It looked almost like an upside down key.</p><p>She furrowed her brow in curiosity as she traced the symbol with her finger.</p><p>"What is this symbol Dad," she asked as she looked up at her father.</p><p>"That I'm not sure lass," he replied, great nana never talked about it much. I assumed it was a gift from great grand-da. I figured she never mentioned it because she missed him and talking of it caused her heartache. Great grand-da had long passed before even my father was born. It could be that the symbol had a special meaning just between the two of them." Merida gazed at the strange symbol as her father spoke, tracing its intricate lines with her finger. For some reason the symbol intrigued her and seemed strangely familiar as if she had seen it a hundred times before but had forgotten it until this very moment, and yet its meaning eluded her. It felt almost as if she were recalling something she had once seen in some long forgotten dream.</p><p>"When I was just a wee lad," Fergus said, "sometimes great nana and I would ride to the bluffs to have a picnic. Once in a while, I would catch her looking out to sea, clutching this pendent with a sad, far off look in her eye. She never told me, but I imagined she may have been missing great grand-da."</p><p>"How sad," Merida sighed glancing up at her father briefly. She turned her attention back to the pendent.</p><p>"She gave it to me when she passed, and now I'm giving it to ye," Fergus replied with a smile.</p><p>"Really," Merida smiled. Fergus nodded.</p><p>"Consider it a belated birthday present," he replied. Merida turned and held her red curls up as her father draped the chain around her neck and clasped it behind her. When she turned to face him, her father beamed.</p><p>"There," he said lovingly, "if she isn't the spittin' image." Merida smiled as she clutched the pendent.</p><p>"It's lovely on ye dear," Elinor said, "of course I had hoped it would be a wedding present."</p><p>"Oh mum," Merida playfully huffed.</p><p>"Hush now dear," Elinor replied with a smile, "I just want ye to be happy."</p><p>"Well I don't need to be married to be happy mum," Merida replied. Fergus just chuckled at their usual banter.</p><p>"Ye know Merida," Elinor replied, "someday ye may feel differently about marriage."</p><p>"Not any day soon," Merida replied. Her mother just smiled and shook her head.</p><p>She walked up to her daughter and gently brushed her unruly curls back from her face. She gazed at her daughter for a long moment. It seemed almost as if she wanted to say something but was heavily weighing the words to choose.</p><p>"Well it's late," Elinor said, "ye should get to bed if ye want to be up bright and early for yer lessons.</p><p>"Mum," Merida whined, "I thought ye changed yer mind after the bear incident!"</p><p>"Aye," Elinor smiled as she headed for the door, "ye can marry who ye choose in yer own time, I didn't say anything about relenting on yer lessons."</p><p>"Goodnight mum," Merida moaned.</p><p>"Goodnight dear," Elinor replied. Elinor left the study pulling the door closed behind her. Merida sighed heavily as she turned back to her father.</p><p>"Don't mind yer mother Merida," Fergus said, "she only wants ye to find happiness."</p><p>"Well, I am happy Dad," Merida replied.</p><p>"Ye know what I mean lass," Fergus replied, "she wants ye to find the kind of happiness that she and I have, she wants ye to find love."</p><p>"I know, I know," Merida sighed. Without thinking she clutched the pendent that hung around her neck, as if it were a habit she'd had for years. She sighed once more and looked up to her father.</p><p>"It's not that I don't want those things at all," Merida replied, "I mean, I do, eventually, some day, maybe. I mean, I do think about it sometimes but I definitely don't think it's something I'll find with any of the lords sons." She huffed as she flopped down into a cozy arm chair beside the fire.</p><p>"Aye, that may be true lass," Fergus chuckled, "they are a bit full of themselves, aren't they."</p><p>"That's an understatement dad," Merida replied. Fergus chuckled again. He sat down in the armchair beside her.</p><p>"And that's not even the worst part," Merida groaned, "whenever they visit they just treat me like I'm some stupid girl that should be impressed with all they say and do." Fergus chuckled.</p><p>"Believe it or not, I was the same way," Fergus chuckled, "I was always tryin" to impress yer mother.</p><p>"What did ye need to impress her for, ye were betrothed weren't ye," Merida replied. <br/>"Betrothed or not I still wanted her to like me,” Fergus chuckled, “I was lucky my betrothed was the most beautiful woman in all of Dunbroch. Yer mother weren't so lucky, she got me!"</p><p>"Dad," Merida laughed, "don't say that, mum was just as lucky, she could a got a ego driven jerk."</p><p>"Well I probably did seem like that at first. I tried like mad to impress her with my brute strength any chance I got," Fergus went on, "until I realized she didn't care at all for brute strength. She just wanted someone to connect with, she wanted me just to treat her as equal. That's when I realized how special she truly was, she wasn't like any of the other girls at all. I got lucky with a one in a million." Merida smiled up at her father.</p><p>"So instead of doing all manner of stupid things to impress her, I just became her friend, and we only grew closer from there."</p><p>"I never had a friend," Merida said thoughtfully, "besides Angus. I guess I never thought about it much before."</p><p>"Well ye've always followed yer own path. lass," Fergus replied, "Yer independent, self reliant, those are all very good things, but someday ye may want something more, ye may find ye want someone to walk the path with ye. Someone that cares for ye, that ye laugh with, someone that challenges ye, and is not afraid to tell ye yer wrong." Merida sighed as her father spoke.</p><p>"Yer not a wee lass anymore," Fergus went on, "ye may find that day come sooner than ye think."</p><p>"Maybe," she sighed.</p><p>"Now I know ye can be as bullheaded as any Scotsman" Fergus replied, "but to find love ye need to keep yer heart opened to the possibility. Merida sighed once more as she silently pondered her father's words. He leaned forward and grasped her hands gently in reassurance.</p><p>"So what yer sayin' is now that I'm grown I need to change myself" Merida replied, "I'm just supposed to pander to a boy so I don't end up alone!" Fergus chuckled.</p><p>"Not in the least," Fergus replied, "You stay the same fiery, free spirit ye've always been since the day ye were born, and the boy should pander to ye!" Merida gazed at her father as she pondered his words.</p><p>"All I'm saying lass, is to just live with an open heart. If ye keep yer heart opened to at least the possibility, then love will be sure to find ye in time, maybe even when ye least expect it." Merida sighed softly as she absentmindedly fiddled with the pendent around her neck.</p><p>Fergus smiled at the sight. It was true how much she resembled his great nana, both in looks and mannerisms.</p><p>"Alright lass," he sighed finally, "off to bed with ye, I don't want yer mother cross, Lord knows I'll never hear the end of it." Merida giggled as she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her father's neck in a quick hug.</p><p>"Thanks Dad," she said as she stood from her chair, "for everything."</p><p>"I love ye lass," Fergus replied.</p><p>"I love ye too dad, she replied as she headed toward the door.</p><p>"I do sympathize with him though," Fergus called out. Merida turned back to her father with a befuddled look on her face.</p><p>"Who," she questioned. Fergus chuckled.</p><p>"The poor sap that wins yer heart," he replied, "whoever he be, Lord knows he has his work cut out for him." Merida smiled as she put her hands on her hips.</p><p>"As well he should," she replied boldly. Fergus laughed heartily at her comment.</p><p>"Aye," he replied, "any lad worthy of my daughter ought to be put through the ringer.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The inspiration for Merida’s pendent is The Illusionist’s locket.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Complications of Change</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 2</p><p>On a high cliff, a little north of the village of Berk; Chief Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III sat upon his knees with a map spread out before him on the soft grass. He weighted each corner down with heavy stones. He pulled his notebook from his pocket and began to flip through its pages until he found his most recent sketch. He tore the page out when he found it and arranged it, just so, on his ever expanding map. The sketch depicted a diagram of a fairly large island which he had only just discovered on his most recent scouting mission.</p><p>The island was about a three day journey Southeast of Berk. Hiccup carefully attached the page to his map using a small bit of dragon-spit glue. He sat back on his knees and gazed at the map that had taken him years to create. He payed particular attention to its newest addition.</p><p>He had only seen the island from the air so far. The body of land was significantly larger than Berk. It was beautiful with high bluffs, rolling hills, and majestic mountains. There was a vast forest that stretched over a majority of the land and a very high hanging valley with a waterfall cascading from it. Judging by the weathered castle and surrounding village he had observed, it was inhabited by a well established people. Whether or not these people he had stumbled upon could be friend or foe to Berk still remained to be seen. Though he was intrigued by this majestic land and though he wanted to land and explore, he had already been away from Berk far longer than he had planned. Instead he headed home with plans to return to the alluring continent some time in the near future.</p><p>"There is my prodigal son," his mother's voice stirred him from his thoughts.</p><p>"If it isn't my prodigal mother," Hiccup replied sarcastically without turning around. He was focused on his map and was drawing symbols in certain areas of the newest addition.</p><p>"Touche', " she replied as she removed her helmet. She leapt down from Cloud-jumper and walked over toward her son.</p><p>"You're four days later than you said you'd be," she said, "we were starting to worry."</p><p>"Sorry," Hiccup replied still focusing on his map, "I went a little more South than I had planned to." Valka sat down on a large stone beside Hiccup and glanced over his shoulder at the newest addition to his map.</p><p>"You've made a new discovery I see," she said, "it's a big bit of land too."</p><p>"The biggest I've found so far," Hiccup replied, "unfortunately it's already inhabited, so no-go for New Berk, but maybe we could get some decent allies out of it."</p><p>"So you took your time getting back so that you could get a good feel for this new land," she replied questioningly.</p><p>"Basically," Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"I see," she replied, "and it was not at all an excuse to avoid the village?"</p><p>"Here it comes," Hiccup sighed in aggravation as he gripped the bridge of his nose.</p><p>"I know things have been difficult for you since you've taken full responsibility as Chief," Valka went on," and with everything that happened with Astri..."</p><p>"Mom, I'm fine," Hiccup interrupted.</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka said. He stood up quickly and turned to face his mother. She gazed up at him skeptically.</p><p>"Really, I'm fine," he insisted, "okay!" Valka sighed as she stood up.</p><p>"I know I haven't been the best mother," Valka replied, "I wasn't there for much of your life, but I'm here now and you can talk to me, about anything."</p><p>"That's great mom," Hiccup huffed, "I'll remember that, if ever I have something I want to talk about."</p><p>"Hiccup," she sighed.</p><p>"Okay, seriously mom," Hiccup began to pace as he spoke, "I'm not avoiding the village, or anything else for that matter. You know I've been really busy with important...chief...stuff."</p><p>"Hiccup..."</p><p>"I've been adding to the map."</p><p>"Hiccup..."</p><p>"Not to mention trying to find a more sustainable place for Berk...and..."</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka yelled. He turned to face her suddenly. She smiled at him, though concern still shone in her eyes. She came over to him as she gazed up at him lovingly. She placed a hand gently on his stubbled cheek.</p><p>"So much like your father," she said softly, "you carry the world upon your shoulders, but you forget, you don't have to do it alone." Hiccup smiled sadly.</p><p>"I miss him," he replied softly.</p><p>"So do I," she replied holding back tears, "so do I."</p><p>They both were suddenly distracted when Toothless swooped past them mere inches from the side of the cliff where they stood. He did a loop de loop and then shot straight back up into the sky, disappearing beyond the clouds.</p><p>"He's getting much better at flying on his own again," Valka smiled.</p><p>"Yeah," Hiccup replied gazing up into the clouds.</p><p>"He's a lot happier with the new tail fin," he went on, "I think he likes having his independence." Valka turned to her son. She watched as he turned his attention back to his map. He knelt down and carefully began to fold the delicate paper and then slipped it back into his notebook.</p><p>"What about you Hiccup," Valka questioned, "are you happy?" Hiccup snorted at her question as he stuffed his notebook into the pocket of Toothless' saddle.</p><p>"Of course," he scoffed, "beyond happy, my life is perfect actually, thanks for asking." He turned and walked past her and over to the edge of the cliff. He crossed his arms over his chest and gazed out into nothing.</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka said softly as she came up behind her son, "you know, it's okay if you're not okay. You don't have to be strong all the time and you certainly don't have to pretend you're okay for me." Hiccup sighed heavily as he glanced briefly in his mother's direction. He then turned his eyes back to the horizon.</p><p>"You're not going to let this go," he sighed as he glanced at her once more from the corner of his eye, "are you?"</p><p>"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," Valka replied, "but you can't run from it any longer. The wedding is today and as Chief you must attend." Hiccup rolled his eyes and groaned.</p><p>"Don't worry mom," he replied in frustration, "I'll be there to perform my chiefly duties!" He turned away from her quickly. He walked back over to Toothless' saddle and began making some minor adjustments here and there as he tried his best to avoid the topic that his mother was trying to bring up.</p><p>"Hiccup," his mother sighed, "I didn't mean..."</p><p>"Look mom," Hiccup interrupted as he stood once more, "whatever Astrid and I had is over, I know that! It's been what, two years, I'm over it, okay, I've been over it!"</p><p>"Saying you're over it is one thing," Valka replied, "watching the girl you once loved marry someone else is another." Hiccup sighed heavily as he stalked past her.</p><p>He plopped down onto the soft grass and threw his legs over the edge of the cliff. Valka silently sat down beside him. She smiled slightly as she watched Toothless and Cloud-jumper flying playfully through the clouds. She closed her eyes as the gentle breeze blew through her hair. She took a deep breath and released it slowly. Without a word, she reached for her son's hand and gripped it tightly in her's for a long moment.</p><p>Hiccup sighed heavily as a million thoughts swirled through his brain. So much had changed in the past few years. He'd found his mother, but lost his father. He'd become chief of his tribe. Then he and Astrid decided to go their separate ways. Now the only girl he ever loved, the only one that had ever given him a real chance, was moving on with someone else. He sighed again as he kept his eyes on the distant horizon.</p><p>"I really am over it and I'm legitimately happy for Astrid, it's just hard," Hiccup paused, "it's hard to see her find the kind of happiness that I'm just not meant to have."</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka questioned, "how can you believe that you are not meant to be happy?"</p><p>"Because I'm not mom," Hiccup replied in aggravation, "I'm meant to be Chief, I'm meant to lead our people! I have to make hard decisions and sacrifice myself for the good of the village."</p><p>"Well that's the biggest load of dragon dung I've ever heard," Valka replied in aggravation of her son's woeful demeanor. Hiccup turned to her in surprise.</p><p>"You are being ridiculous," Valka said, "you can be a leader and still find love, you don't need to sacrifice yourself or your happiness just because your meant to lead us! There is more to your life then being Chief!"</p><p>Hiccup huffed at his mother's words. Perhaps he was being melodramatic, but that didn't change the way he felt. In his heart he longed for more than he felt he deserved. To be honest, he'd never really known true happiness in Berk. Sure, he had moments of happiness here and there; befriending Toothless, finding his mother, seeing his parents reunite, gaining his father's pride, and finally being recognized by his tribe. But the closest he'd ever come to true happiness was when he was with Astrid.</p><p>Though their relationship seemed ill-fated from the start, the moments he had shared with her were among his happiest and seemed irreplaceable. For the most part their relationship was good, but in the end they found that they were just two very different people on two very different paths. Though their paths seemed to coincide for a time, they eventually had taken their natural course away from each other.</p><p>By all means, his path should have continued with her's, he should have been happy with what they had, he should have wanted the life she did. For the most part, he was happy, but he often found himself feeling restless and dissatisfied. He was constantly on the move, leaving little time for her or their relationship. Though he tried, he simply could not settle his nomadic soul, he could not still his adventurous heart and he could not quiet his longing for discovery. He always felt as if he were searching for something more, there were new lands to discover, new dragons to study, and new people to meet.</p><p>Though he led Berk as Chief, he found his soul could not settle there. Though he loved Astrid, he could not give her what she wanted. His heart was only half in and she wanted it all. He knew it, she knew it, and it was only a matter of time before they had come to a crossroads. However, knowing they were better off apart, didn't make it any easier to see her eventually move on. His mother squeezed his hand tightly in reassurance, distracting him from his thoughts. He turned to her and smiled weakly.</p><p>"I should have been happy," he muttered, "Astrid would have chosen me, if I'd just..."</p><p>"Settled," his mother replied. Hiccup looked over at her and nodded. He sighed heavily once again as he ran his fingers through his hair.</p><p>"It's just...how I feel...I mean...how I've always felt, it's...it's just so...complicated," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Yes," Valka sighed, "love can be complicated, but only if you think too much." Hiccup smirked at her.</p><p>"What are you saying," he scoffed, "are you saying I...I complicate things?" His mother shrugged matter of factly.</p><p>"Oh well, that's just...just great," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"I'm only saying that maybe it's not as complicated as you make it seem Hiccup," Valka replied.</p><p>"Oh, okay," Hiccup replied, "well by all means then, uncomplicate it for me."</p><p>"Okay," Valka replied, "put simply, you and Astrid were just not meant to be." For a moment Hiccup just stared at his mother with a dumbstruck look on his face.</p><p>"Well that was just a little harsh," he replied.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound harsh," Valka replied, "but when it comes to love, true love, you shouldn't have to overthink things. With true love, there is no doubts, no second guessing, and nothing could dare come between you." Hiccup gazed at his mother in surprise.</p><p>"You need to stop punishing yourself for what happened with Astrid and move on," Valka said firmly, "don't close your heart completely just because you've been hurt once." Hiccup nodded as he pondered his mother's words. He turned his eyes back to the horizon.</p><p>"Hiccup, when you find the one you're meant for," Valka continued, "you'll know it, without question, "you'll feel it in your soul. True love will bring peace to your restless heart. Hiccup stayed silent for a long moment as he listened to his mother's words.</p><p>"Is that how it was for you and dad," Hiccup asked. Valka frowned slightly as she turned her eyes to the ground with an expression of guilt and sadness upon her face. She turned back to her son and smiled weakly.</p><p>"My Stoic was a good man," Valka replied, "I loved him with all my heart. The day I married your father, I hadn't a doubt in my mind nor my heart. There was never a question that he was meant for me and I for him." Hiccup nodded as he listened to his mother's words.</p><p>"But," Valka sighed, "just because love is true doesn't mean it's easy."</p><p>"When cloud-jumper took me," Valka continued, "I knew that we were wrong about the dragons, I knew I couldn't be a part of the killings any more. I had in my head that Stoic would never change. I thought that he'd never listen to me, that he was too bull headed to ever accept what I'd learned about our enemy. I should have put more faith in him. I should have at least tried to return." She looked up at Hiccup with tears in her eyes.</p><p>"Mom," Hiccup sighed as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "I'm sorry." Valka shook her head.</p><p>"Don't be sorry," Valka replied, "it was my choice, and the choice I made cost me a lifetime with my family. I have to live with that." Hiccup smiled at her in reassurance.</p><p>"I know we missed out on a lot, mom," Hiccup replied, "but you're here now and that's all that matters." Valka smiled at him as she wiped the tears from her eyes.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "I am here now, and I'll be damned if I let you wallow any longer." She jumped up suddenly and whistled into the air.</p><p>"How about a race," she smiled mischievously as she quickly put her helmet on.</p><p>"Oh you're on," Hiccup replied with a determined look in his eye. He leapt from his place, threw his helmet on, and whistled to Toothless.</p><p>"Meet you at the village," she laughed as she leapt from the edge of the cliff and landed directly on cloud-jumper's back.</p><p>"Hey that's cheating," he yelled out.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Moving On</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 3</p><p>Hiccup sat at the head table of the great hall, silently observing the festivities around him. Astrid's wedding feast seemed as joyous as any other he had been to in his lifetime, but he found he could only half-heartedly be a part of the celebration.</p><p>As far as he was concerned, he'd done his part, he showed up, he gave his blessing as Chief, and he'd toasted the happy couple. Now as the celebration ensued, all he wanted to do was leave.</p><p>He tried to avoid looking directly in Astrid's direction, but the glimpses he stole made his heart lurch. She was more beautiful than ever. She wore a long white gown with white fur draped over her shoulders. Her long blonde hair was braided in it's usual fashion with a crown of wild flowers atop her head. But what killed him the most was her smile. Her radiant smile that once had been for him, now was meant for someone else.</p><p>Hiccup reached for his mug, lazily lifted it to his mouth, and took a quick swig of ale. As he set the mug down, he was startled by a hard slap on his back that almost caused him to choke.</p><p>"What's up cuz," Snotlout grinned as he sat down beside Hiccup.</p><p>"Hey Hic," Fishlegs said as he sat down on the other side of him.</p><p>"Hey guys," Hiccup said flatly, "what's up?"</p><p>"Oh nothing," Snotlout replied, "just saw you sitting over here looking miserable, so we wanted to cheer you up."</p><p>"Oh great," Hiccup replied sarcastically, "just what I needed." Suddenly he was grabbed from behind by Tuffnut, who put him in a headlock and messed up his hair.</p><p>"What up Chief," Tuff said with a chuckle.</p><p>"Hey Tuff, take it easy on him," Snotlout replied, "can't you see he's having a bad day over here?" Tuff promptly let go of Hiccup.</p><p>"Awe come on Hic," Tuffnut said as he pulled up a chair, "don't let it get ya down, I mean it wasn't like a shock or anything. I mean, we all saw it coming right...am I right?" He motioned to the others. Hiccup sneered unbeknownst to Tuff. Ruffnut promptly elbowed her brother in the gut.</p><p>"Hey, what was that for," Tuff yelled out indignantly.</p><p>"Shut it Tuff," Ruffnut snapped.</p><p>"Come on," Tuff replied, "he knows I'm just kidding, don't ya Hic...Hic?" When Tuffnut turned to face Hiccup, he was already headed for the door of the great hall.</p><p>"See what ya did dumb ass," Ruffnut said. She smacked her brother in the back of the head, causing his helmet to fly off.</p><p>Normally Hiccup was not bothered by the comments his friends made about Astrid being too good for him, or that she'd always been out of his league, or even when they flat out told him he was an idiot for letting her go. Today, however, he did not feel like dealing with it. True, Tuffnut's comment was thoughtless, but then it was rare that Tuffnut ever thought before he spoke. Mostly Hiccup saw the perfect opportunity to leave.</p><p>He tried to make his way out of the crowded hall as tactfully as possible. The last thing he wanted was to draw attention to himself or to make a scene of leaving the celebration. He was just about out the door when Valka called to him.</p><p>"Hiccup," she called out, "where are you off to son?" Hiccup rolled his eyes and sighed heavily as he turned around to face her.</p><p>"Nowhere," he replied, "I just need some fresh air." She gazed at him questioningly. He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed again.</p><p>"Can we please not make a big deal about it," he replied, "I just need a break from...this." He motioned to the crowded hall. Valka smiled sympathetically. She patted her son on the shoulder.</p><p>"I'll see you later okay," she replied. He nodded and made his way out the door.</p><p>The moment he stepped outside, he was greeted with a cold breeze and an instant sense of relief. For the first time that night he felt like he could breathe. He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly as he ran his fingers through his dark, slightly messed hair. Now if he could just find Toothless, all would be right with the world again. He let out a whistle and scanned the dark night sky for any sign of the wily dragon.</p><p>Come on Toothless," he called out impatiently, "I need this flight more than you right now."</p><p>"Leaving already," a familiar feminine voice called out, stilling him in his tracks. Hiccup's heart froze for a moment. He sighed heavily as he turned to face her. The woman he had tried to avoid all night stood before him, with her arms wrapped tightly around herself in an attempt for warmth. She smiled at him slightly, but he could see the disappointment in her eyes.</p><p>"We've been friends a long time Hiccup," she went on, "and you're just gonna leave without so much as a goodbye, or even a congratulations."</p><p>"I did congratulate you," Hiccup replied in aggravation, "didn't you hear the speech and the toast, I mean, for crying out loud Astrid, what more do you want from me?" She walked up to him slowly, her smile gradually fading.</p><p>"I just want my friend to be happy for me," she replied.</p><p>"I am happy for you," Hiccup replied as he turned his eyes back to the horizon, "I'm happy you found what you wanted." She knew his sarcastic tone like the back of her hand. One of the things that aggravated her the most about Hiccup was his practical inability to say how he felt without his words dripping with sarcasm.</p><p>"Don't be like that Hiccup," she sighed.</p><p>"Like what," Hiccup snapped as he quickly turned back to face her, "why are you even here Astrid and not in there with your new husband? I mean what more do you want me to do, I showed up didn't I? What is...is that not enough? Do you want me to wallow in your happiness, is that it? Do you want to just rub it in my face so that I never forget how blissfully happy you are?"</p><p>"You are impossible, you know that," Astrid groaned, "do you really think that little of me? You think I would get married just to spite you? You know, the last time I checked the world didn't revolve around you!" Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at her.</p><p>"Just forget it," she huffed as she quickly turned to walk away but she paused. She turned back to him with a scowl on her face.</p><p>"You know what Hiccup," she said firmly, "I did find what I wanted, and I'm not sorry! I am so tired of thinking about how my happiness affects you!"</p><p>"Then don't," Hiccup replied flatly, "what I do or don't do or how I feel shouldn't matter to you if you've moved on...which clearly you have!" Astrid shook her head and sighed as she gazed up at Hiccup.</p><p>"Look," she replied more calmly, "I know that there is nothing I can say or do to make you feel any differently than you do right now, but I do still care."</p><p>"Why," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Because," she replied, "you're one of my best friends and I will always care about you." Hiccup just gazed at her wordlessly.</p><p>"I mean, yeah we tried to be more once," she went on, "it didn't work out and that's okay. There is nothing you could have done differently that would have changed the outcome."</p><p>"I know that," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Then why are you still beating yourself up about it," Astrid questioned. Hiccup sighed as he turned away from her and gazed out at the horizon once again. He silently pondered her words. Her words had struck a nerve within his heart. Maybe it was true, after two years of being apart; two years of telling himself and everyone around him that he was over her, maybe the reason he felt so hurt by her moving on was because he was still punishing himself for loosing her. Maybe he was punishing himself for not feeling what he should have felt; for not loving her the way she deserved. Now seeing her so happy without him only made his guilt that much worse.</p><p>"I worry about you Hiccup," she went on, "whether you want me to or not. As your second in command and as your friend. I just want you to find whatever it is that you're searching for. I just want you to be happy." Hiccup turned back and gazed at her remorsefully.</p><p>"Look Astrid," Hiccup sighed, "I'm sorry, I just..." Astrid just shook her head.</p><p>"You don't need to apologize," Astrid replied, "I mean, honestly, this is how it all was meant to be, Hiccup. I found where I belong, now it's your turn."</p><p>"Thanks Astrid," he replied. She nodded to him in response.</p><p>"Hey, just for the record," Hiccup replied, "I really am happy for you." Astrid smiled appreciatively.</p><p>"Honestly," Hiccup sighed, "you are the happiest I've ever seen you. Which is really saying something because in all the years I've known you, you've kinda had a little bit of an anger issue."</p><p>"Shut-up," she said as she punched him in the arm.</p><p>"Ouch, hey," Hiccup chuckled as he rubbed his arm, "and apparently you're also prone to completely unprovoked bouts of physical violence!"</p><p>"Unprovoked," she mocked with a smirk on her face. They both chuckled at their usual banter. As their laughter subsided they fell into a moment of semi-comfortable silence.</p><p>"Well," Astrid sighed, "I better get back. She glanced over her shoulder toward the great hall and then turned back to Hiccup. She smiled slightly.</p><p>"It looks like your ride is here," she pointed to the sky behind him. Hiccup turned back to see Toothless headed in their direction. He turned back to Astrid and smiled warmly.</p><p>"Congratulations Astrid," he said in a soft, genuine tone, "I mean it."</p><p>"Thanks Hiccup," she replied, "now get outta here."</p><p>Toothless landed with a thud. Hiccup turned to his old friend.</p><p>"Hey bud," Hiccup greeted as he patted the dragon on the snout, "you wanna go for a ride?" The dragon snorted happily and smiled at Hiccup with his signature toothless grin. He bent down to let his rider on his back. Hiccup mounted the dragon quickly and took the reigns. He smiled once again at Astrid.</p><p>"See ya Astrid," he said with a smirk.</p><p>"See ya Chief," she replied.</p><p>"Let's go Toothless," Hiccup commanded. The jet black dragon opened his wings and leapt into the starry night sky</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Discovering a Mystery</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I suggest looking up YouTube video of the illusionist locket to see how it works because I describe it in this chapter and it may help you visualize it better.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 4<br/>
Merida had been curious about the pendent that belonged to her great great grandmother ever since her father had given it to her. She was especially curious about the strange symbol carved into the back of it. She could not put her finger on why she was so curious about the symbol, or why it felt so familiar to her even though she’d never seen it before.<br/>
For the first time in her life she willingly went to the study to read about Dunbroch’s long passed queen. She’d spent most of the last few days trying to find something, anything about the pendent, or even something more personal to her great great grandmother, a journal, a memoir, anything. But all she could find were basic history books about her.<br/>
She had learned many interesting things about her namesake, all of which left her more intrigued then ever about the first crowned heiress to the throne. She learned that Mairead was the only child of King Haemish the first, and so destined to inherit the throne. The competition for her hand when she had come of age was what started the tradition of the Dunbroch games. She also learned that Mairead had married Callum II of the clan MacGuffin, but he left her a widow shortly after their second child was born. Despite opposition from the lords, Mairead remained unmarried for the remainder of her rule until her eldest son had come of age.<br/>
While everything Merida had learned of her great great grandmother was interesting, it all had left Merida no closer to uncovering the mystery about the pendent. It seemed that all she had discovered only left her with more questions then she had before.<br/>
She sat at her father’s desk with her head resting upon her fist, just staring down at the opened book before her.  She was feeling quite discouraged about her fruitless search. She sighed heavily as she closed the book she had been reading and leaned back lazily in the chair. She absentmindedly reached for the pendent and began fiddling with it as she contemplated where else she could possibly look for more answers.<br/>
As she was turning the pendent in her fingers, she felt a small click. She paused and looked down at the pendent curiously. She could see that half of the oblong pendent was flipped up slightly.<br/>
“What in the world,” Merida muttered.<br/>
She quickly took the necklace off to get a better look at the pendent. She could see that the pendent was in fact cut diagonally in half. The cut line was practically hidden by the intricate designs on both sides giving it the illusion of being one solid piece of metal. She gently turned the piece a bit further. The piece continued to rotate upwards until it clicked into place. The pendent that was once an oval shape now looked like a heart. Merida gazed at it in amazement.<br/>
She held it carefully as she inspected it further. She could see a faint line around the edge of the now heart-shaped pendent.<br/>
“I wonder,” she whispered. She carefully pulled at the pendent to see if it would open like a locket, but as hard as she tried it would not open. She sighed  heavily as she thought for a moment. She looked at the pendent once more. With her thumb she pushed gently on the side of it causing the face of the heart to slide slightly to the side.  She smiled at her discovery. She gently pushed the face until it opened completely revealing a hidden compartment. Tucked inside was a small braided lock of brown chestnut colored hair tied with a very thin piece of string. As she gazed at it curiously, she felt a chill go down her spine.<br/>
She thought back to what her father had told her about her grandmother.<br/>
...<br/>
“Once in a while, I would catch her looking out to sea, clutching this pendent with a sad, far off look in her eye. She never told me, but I imagined she may have been missing great grand-da.”<br/>
...<br/>
Something odd occurred to her and she flipped back through the book she had just been reading. She paused when she found the picture of her great great grandfather King Callum II. The long past king was depicted with fair blonde hair.<br/>
She gazed at the picture curiously then looked back at the lock of hair. If the pendent was a gift from her great great grandfather, then who’s lock of hair was contained within it. For a moment she thought perhaps the lock was from one of Mairead’s children, but both Merida’s  great grandfather and great uncle had inherited Mairead’s bright red hair as Merida had seen in their portraits. She thought back to what her father had told her about the strange symbol on the pendent when she had asked.<br/>
...<br/>
“Great nana never talked about it much. I assumed it was a gift from great grand-da. I figured she never mentioned it because she missed him and talking of it caused her heartache. Great grand-da had long passed before even my father was born. It could be that the symbol had a special meaning just between the two of them.”<br/>
...<br/>
Perhaps the pendent and the symbol did have a special meaning to Mairead, but Merida began to suspect that neither had anything to do with her great great grandfather.<br/>
Suddenly Merida was distracted from her thoughts by the faint sound of whispering seemingly coming from the other side of the closed study door. Thinking she had caught her brothers trying to sneak up on her, she smirked slightly, then tip-toed quietly toward the door. She slowly turned the door knob and then quickly yanked the door opened.<br/>
“Ah-ha,” she yelled, “caught...you...” Her voice trailed off as she found the hall completely empty.<br/>
“That’s strange,” she murmured to herself, “I could have sworn I just heard...” She stepped forth from the door and turned to her left to look down the long corridor, but there was no one there as far as she could see. She paused instantly when she once again heard the soft murmuring directly behind her. She stiffened in suspense as she slowly turned around. Her eyes widened as she came face to face with a small blue flame floating a mere foot from where she stood. She could feel her heart skip and her breath catch in her throat.<br/>
“Will O’ the Wisp,” she whispered in surprise. She hadn’t seen one of the mysterious blue spirits since the ‘bear incident‘ years ago. It was strange and surprising to see one within the castle walls and she wondered the significance.<br/>
“Okay,” she said softly, “lead me where ye will spirit...but so help me if ye lead me to another witch.” She gulped and stepped forward. Just as before, the wisp vanished when it was nearly within reach. It reappeared instantly a few feet further down the hall. She followed down the long corridor. This time the wisps did not form a trail but continued one at a time through the corridors of the castle. They led her up a flight of stairs to the next floor up. They turned down another long hall and then finally stopped in front of a door.<br/>
The door, Merida recognized, was the door to what was once her great great grandmother’s sitting room. As Merida approached the door, the wisp vanished and did not reappear.<br/>
“In here,” she questioned in confusion. She took a deep breath as she reached for the doorknob. She slowly pulled the door opened and peeked inside. The room had mostly been left untouched since Queen Mairead’s passing and, besides a heavy coating of dust and cobwebs, it looked as if she had only just left it.<br/>
Merida stepped inside and glanced around curiously. Nothing stood out to her, and there seemed to be nothing significant about the room at all.<br/>
“Okay,” she called out, “what is it ye brought me here for?” She heard the murmuring whisper once again which caused her to whip quickly around. She did not see a wisp but a faint blue glow flickering behind a tapestry that hung beside the fireplace. Merida walked forward and studied the tapestry. It merely depicted a map of Dunbroch and nothing significant stood out to her about it. On the map itself were pictures of significant places in Dunbroch, such as, Dunbroch castle, the village, the Fire Falls, Dragon’s Loch, and the ancient standing stones. Though she saw nothing unusual, the tiny blue flickering glow persisted from behind the tapestry.<br/>
“I don’t understand,” Merida called out, “what is it that ye want me to see?” The wisp materialized suddenly in front of the tapestry, startling Merida and causing her to jump back. The wisp then slowly faded into the tapestry until it had completely vanished behind it once more, giving off it’s eerie blue glow from behind the fabric.  It suddenly dawned on Merida.<br/>
“Behind the tapestry,” she muttered. She quickly grabbed the edge of the tapestry and lifted it away from the wall. The wisp was floating in front of one of the stones in the wall. Still perplexed Merida leaned closer to the stone just as the wisp vanished completely. Upon closer inspection she notice a small carving on the very corner of the stone. Her heart nearly froze mid-beat in her chest when she realized it was the same strange upside down key symbol that was carved into her pendent.<br/>
“What in the world,” Merida muttered. She reached her hand out to touch the stone and realized it was loose.  She tediously pulled the loose stone from the wall  and found a hidden space behind it. There she found some sort of journal and a leather bound sketchbook. She carefully pulled the items from their hiding spot. Each book was covered in what seemed like a centuries worth of dust. She brought them out from behind the tapestry and set them upon the writing desk at the other end of the room. She plopped down in the desk chair to get a better look at them. As she brushed the layers of dust from their covers, she noticed the journal had the same Celtic symbol as was on her pendent etched into its cover. She wondered if these items both belonged to her great great grandmother. She then turned her attention to the sketchbook. On it’s cover she noticed three letter H’s scratched into the top left corner. She gently traced the letters with her fingers as she pondered their meaning. She opened the cover of the book and began to leaf through its yellowed pages.<br/>
The sketches she found within were amazingly detailed and strikingly beautiful. They depicted some foreign land she had never seen before. There were small wooden buildings and strange people. The people almost reminded her of the pictures she’d seen of Vikings in her history books, except these people didn’t look like crazed evil lunatics out for blood. Rather they looked like normal everyday people going about their normal everyday business. There were many landscapes, some of Viking longships, and even some sketches of dragons.<br/>
Suddenly she was distracted by the sound of her mother calling her from the hall. She quickly collected the items and ran to the door clutching them behind her back. She opened the door quickly, just as her mother walked by.<br/>
“Oh,” Elinor jumped in fright. She relaxed at the sight of Merida, “oh, Merida, ye scared the daylights out of me!”<br/>
“Sorry mum,” Merida grinned cheekily.<br/>
“I’ve been looking all over for ye dear,” Elinor said, “what are ye doing in here.”<br/>
“Nothing,” Merida replied quickly, “I just..I’ve  been curious about great great nana, so I thought I’d look around in her sitting room.”<br/>
Elinor smiled at her daughter.<br/>
“Well,” she replied, “I’m glad to see ye are taking such an interest in Dunbroch history.”<br/>
“I found quite a bit about her in the study,” Merida replied, “from what I read she was very interesting.”<br/>
“Aye she was quite the inspiration.,” Elinor replied.<br/>
“Did ye know, that she ruled alone for many years after she was widowed young,” Merida went on.<br/>
“Aye,”  Elinor smiled,” her first born son was far too young to take the throne so she ruled until he came of age.”<br/>
“She is certainly more interesting then I thought she’d be,” Merida replied.<br/>
“Did ye find anything of interest in her sitting room,” Elinor asked.<br/>
“Uh, no,” Merida replied clutching the items she’d found tighter behind her back,” not really.” She smiled nervously. Elinor gazed at her daughter curiously for a moment.<br/>
“Well,” Elinor sighed,”I know it’s yer free day today, but I’d like to spend the morning with ye before ye head off with Angus. Why don’t ye come down to breakfast.”<br/>
“Sure mum,” Merida replied, “I’ll be right down...uh, but I forgot my bow. It’s in my room, I’ll go and get it and I’ll be right down.”<br/>
She quickly exited the room and headed down the hall in the opposite direction while keeping the items she’d found hidden from view.<br/>
Elinor took a step inside the old sitting room and glanced around curiously. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, Elinor shrugged and walked out pulling the door shut behind her.<br/>
Merida ran into her room and quickly shut the door behind her. She quickly shoved the two books into a satchel, she then grabbed her bow, quiver and cloak and quickly headed to the dining hall. She took her usual route through the kitchen grabbing a few shiny red apples for Angus along the way.<br/>
As she made her way to her place at the table,  Merida found her mother reading letters from the neighboring clans, her brothers looking bored and playing with their haggis and her father was slipping table scraps to the dogs. Merida sat down without a word and grabbed a sweet roll for herself.<br/>
“Fergus,” Elinor said as she handed her husband the letter in her hand, “it seems there’s been another report of a dragon like creature flying around near Dingwall’s territory.<br/>
“A dragon,” Merida replied with a full mouth of food. She swallowed the bit of food in her mouth quickly,” Mum, did ye just say clan Dingwall saw a dragon?” Fergus chuckled.<br/>
“Tall tales I’m sure lass,” the king replied, “and knowing Dingwall, an apparition brought on by too much ale.”<br/>
“I don’t know Fergus,” Elinor replied, this is the third report of such a sighting, there could be something more too it. This time Lord Dingwall claims one of his guards thought he saw a rider on the back of the beast.”<br/>
To this Fergus burst out laughing, “a rider; they’re drunkards, the whole lot of em!”<br/>
“Fergus,” Elinor scolded.<br/>
“There hasn’t been a dragon in Dunbroch in nearly three hundred years,” Fergus chuckled,” let alone one with a rider. The last of the beasts were wiped out when my great nana was still a young lass.”<br/>
“Great great Nana saw real dragons,” Merida asked curiously.<br/>
“Aye,” Fergus replied, “she used to tell me stories about the beasts. Mindless devils they were, terrorizing the countryside, stealing livestock, burning down villages. They were like...like Mor’du with wings and fiery breath. No mortal man could tame one let alone ride one!” He chuckled again in spite of himself.<br/>
“What did they do,” Haemish chimed in.<br/>
“Aye, Dad,” Hubert asked, “how did they get rid of all the dragons?”<br/>
“Well, your great great great grand-da,  King Haemish,” Fergus replied, “knew of a clan of Vikings who were well known for their skills at fighting and killing dragons. So he sent a messenger to ask them for their help.”<br/>
All three boys gazed at their father in awe.<br/>
“He asked vikings for help,” Merida questioned skeptically.<br/>
“Aye,” Fergus replied, “according to great nana, King Haemish and the Viking Chief of Berk were friends. As a favor to Dunbroch the Berkians came to rid our land of the beasts.” As her father spoke Merida’s mind drifted to the sketchbook she had just found in Mairead’s sitting room, in particular the sketches of the Viking like people. She wondered if the drawings were of the Vikings of Berk.<br/>
“For a long time Dunbroch and Berk had an alliance,” Fergus continued, “they were as close to Dunbroch as Dingwall, Macintosh and MacGuffin; but it wasn’t to last.”<br/>
“What happened Dad,” Merida asked curiously.<br/>
“Well that part is a bit foggy,” Fergus replied, “from what I can remember, great Nana said that there was some some sort of disagreement between great great grand-da and the chief of the Vikings that could not be resolved.”<br/>
“What sort of a disagreement could have caused them to dissolve their alliance,” Merida questioned.<br/>
“I don’t rightly know,” Fergus shrugged,  “whatever it was, it must’ve been pretty bad, because King Haemish declared the Vikings  banished from ever returning to Dunbroch.”<br/>
“Banished,” Merida questioned in surprise.<br/>
“Aye, I’ve looked many times for the answers myself,” Fergus replied but alas I could never find a single thing written about the whole ordeal, not even the decree of banishment, and not a single record of why the decree was made.”<br/>
“So nobody knows why the Vikings were banished,” Merida questioned.<br/>
“Aye,” Fergus replied, “great nana was the last alive of those who’d have known anything about it, the last of those who were actually there and she never spoke of it. I could never find anything on my own,” Fergus continued, “I imagine if ever anything was written about it, it’s been long lost to history.”<br/>
Later<br/>
Merida rode until she reached the standing stones. She didn’t know why the wil o’ the wisp had led her to the hidden items behind the castle wall and she was seeking answers. Having first seen the wisp in the stone circle and knowing it was considered sacred ground, she figured it was a good place to start. If anything, maybe the wisps would be more likely to reappear to her there. It was a long shot but she had to try something.<br/>
When she finally arrived, she brought Angus to a halt and leapt down from the massive horse. She removed her satchel and walked into the middle of the circle.<br/>
“I have the items ye led me to,” she called out into the empty air, “what do I do now?” She waited a few moments but nothing happened. She huffed as she plopped down beside on of the large stones.<br/>
“I’ll sit here all night if I must,” she called out. She reached into the satchel and pulled out the sketchbook. She leaned her back up against the stone as she once again began to flip through its pages gazing at each beautifully detailed picture. She paused when she came across a surprising sketch.<br/>
It depicted a young maiden sitting at the edge of the bluffs of Dunbroch, gazing out at the horizon. Her long curly hair blowing behind her and a dreamy look in her eyes. Merida recognized the place immediately.<br/>
There was no question this maiden was Mairead, but this sketch was much different than her much more regal portrait that hung upon the castle wall. Mairead looked happy and free in this sketch. Merida wondered who had drawn it with such admiration behind their pen.<br/>
“Angus,” she exclaimed, “this is a picture of great great nana, I’m sure of it!” The horse huffed in response.<br/>
“Oh what do ye know,” Merida replied as she quickly shut the book. She put it down beside her and then searched her bag for the apples she had packed earlier. She handed one to Angus.<br/>
“Here boy,” she said as she took a bite of her own apple. She wiped the juice from her mouth with her sleeve as she reached into the satchel once more and pulled out the other book.<br/>
“I’m sure this journal is Nana’s she muttered to herself. She leaned back upon the stone pillar once more, opened the book and began to read.<br/>
....<br/>
Father has invited the Viking clan of Berk to our kingdom in hopes they may help to rid us of the dragons that plague our land.<br/>
Mother is concerned about having their kind in Dunbroch. She says Vikings are nothing more than unruly drunkards and troublesome hooligans who chase women and start fights. Honestly they sound exactly like Scotsman if ye ask me.<br/>
...<br/>
As she read her grandmother’s words, Merida chuckled nearly spitting out the bite of apple she had just taken. She continued to read.<br/>
....<br/>
Dad says he knows the chief of Berk. He says they fought together once and have been friends since. He says the clan of Berk is different than most Viking clans. I guess they don’t raid or pillage. But they are known for hunting dragons.<br/>
...<br/>
“Just like Dad said,” Merida mumbled to herself. She flipped forward a few pages in the journal and began to read another entry.<br/>
...<br/>
The Vikings have arrived! I have to say, they are much different than I expected. To hear my mother speak of them, ye would think them to be a bunch of bloodthirsty mercenaries with poor hygiene and murder in their eyes, but they seem to me to be fairly normal people. The have strange clothes and strange names but they are really just like us. They are boisterous and loud much like most Scots I know.<br/>
Their chief, Halvar the Terrible, reminds me a lot of Dad. I think even mum was surprised by these Vikings.<br/>
The chief’s son is about my age. His name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock. What a mouthful his name is, but he is quite handsome though. He is well-mannered and polite and seems very nice. Imagine that, a well mannered Viking! Dad said it would be good if he and I could get acquainted. Especially if our people are to have an alliance. Tomorrow I’m to show him around the kingdom.<br/>
...<br/>
“Hiccup Horrendous Haddock,” Merida muttered. She picked up the sketchbook and examined the three H’s scratched into its cover.<br/>
“This must’ve been his book,” she thought aloud, “he must’ve been the artist.” It made sense, the book was filled with pictures of a foreign land and Viking like people and dragons.<br/>
“He must’ve been showing great great nana his home,” Merida said to herself. She put down the sketchbook and turned her attention back to the journal. She flipped further ahead and continued to read.<br/>
...<br/>
Today was the first day in months that I was allowed to go riding, now that the dragons are finally under control. Baylor was thrilled to get out of his stable and run at full gallop again. We rode to the bluffs and to my surprise I came upon Hiccup practicing archery. He showed me how and even let me shoot some! Mum would be beside herself if she knew. She thinks it’s not lady like to own a bow let alone shoot one! Hiccup said in his clan women know how to fight as well as the men. What I wouldn’t give to see that. I think I should like to visit Burk one day.<br/>
...<br/>
Merida smirked as she read Mairead’s words. Perhaps she and her were more alike than she had previously thought. She turned ahead a few more pages.<br/>
...</p><p>
 Hiccup is the opposite of everything I’ve ever been taught about Vikings. He is charming and sweet and practically a gentlemen.  He treats and speaks to me as an equal instead of just an inferior girl, which is more than I can say for Callum. My betrothed barely takes notice of me. He’s far too busy sucking up to my dad all the time. I swear the only interest he has in me is the throne. 
Hiccup on the other hand, actually listens to me. He doesn’t just pretend to care about my opinion either, he actually takes interest. He is just so different than any boy I’ve ever known, not to mention handsome. His smile is infectious and his eyes are as green as the highlands in spring. Whenever he looks at me I swear my knees go weak. The way he looks at me, makes me feel like I’m the only girl in Dunbroch. Every time I see him I just feel so nervous, my heart beats fast and it feels like there are a million butterflies fluttering around in my gut! He sees me for who I am and not just what I am. It’s so nice to spend time with someone who actually listens to me and takes an interest in what I have to say.<br/>
...<br/>
Merida’s cheeks flushed as she read her grandmother’s words. She sighed dreamily as she closed the book. Angus nuzzled Merida looking for another apple. 
“You know Angus,” she replied, “if I didn’t know any better I’d say great great nana had a wee crush on this Viking boy.” The horse whinnied impatiently. 
“Oh what do ye know,” Merida huffed. She pulled another apple from her bag and tossed it to the ornery horse. She chuckled as she watched the horse happily munch his apple. She then picked up the journal and continued reading
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Mystery In Dreams</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 5</p><p>Hiccup found himself alone and without Toothless in the middle of an unknown forest. It was dark and for the life of him he couldn't remember how he had come to be there or what could have happened to Toothless that caused them to be separated.</p><p>He trudged on through the unfamiliar land searching for the dragon or at the very least a clue as to where he was.</p><p>"Toothless," he called out, "come on bud, where are you? He suddenly heard a branch snap behind him. He quickly whirled around expecting to find the wily dragon, instead he only found empty woods behind him.</p><p>"Toothless," he called out as he peered into the darkness.</p><p>"Hiccup..."</p><p>He heard the faint murmur of his own name echo from the trees to the left of him. He turned and peered curiously through the darkness, but he could see nothing.</p><p>"Alright bud," Hiccup called to Toothless, "stop playing games and come on out. These woods are starting to mess with my head and I'd really like to get outta here."</p><p>Out of the corner of his eye he saw a shadow move quickly between the trees a few feet away from where he stood.</p><p>"Toothless," he questioned as he quickly headed in the shadow's direction.</p><p>"Hiccup," he heard the whisper of his name again, causing an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup muttered, "now I'm starting to freak out." He slowly drew his dragon blade and extended the blade as he inched forward. He heard a twig snap once more to the right of him. He snapped his head in the direction of the sound, holding his dragon blade up at the ready.</p><p>He began to wonder if he was being surrounded by some unknown enemy. He turned back to the path ahead only to come face to face with a small blue glowing orb. He stumbled back in surprise nearly falling to the ground. He regained his stance quickly and swung his dragon blade in its direction. To his astonishment, the blade passed straight through the orb, but it still remained, unfazed and unwavering.</p><p>"What the...," Hiccup gazed at the flame like orb in amazement and confusion. It seemed to be beckoning him to follow it. He lowered his dragon blade and slowly inched closer to the orb.</p><p>"What are you," he questioned as he cautiously reached out in an attempt to touch it.</p><p>However, just as he got close enough to it, the small flame vanished into thin air. Within seconds, the flame reappeared a few feet away from him. Hiccup cautiously stepped forward but once again, the moment he was within reach, the flame vanished only to reappear a few feet further away. This continued until a trail of the orbs appeared before him, seemingly leading him deeper into the woods.</p><p>He followed with trepidation. He was unsure if the strange orbs were trying to lure him to an ill-fate. Regardless of his hesitation, it felt almost as if he were being pulled with a magnet, he could not stop himself from following.</p><p>The orb trail ended at a clearing in the woods. Just as he approached the final orb, it vanished leaving him without direction.</p><p>"Okay," he called out, "now what?"</p><p>"Hiccup," the whispering voice returned.</p><p>"I'm getting really tired of all the mysteriousness," Hiccup called out. He stepped slowly out into the clearing with his hand still clenching tightly the hilt of his sword.</p><p>His eyes widened at the sight before him. He found himself stepping into a ring of large seemingly ancient stones that seemed to be arranged purposely. There were ancient carvings on them that looked to Hiccup almost like ancient Viking runes.</p><p>"Hiccup," the voice beckoned him further. The voice seemed to echo from the center of the stones. He stepped further forward, gazing curiously upon the large stones as he made his way further into its center. All the while he tried to make sense in his mind how people of ancient times could have achieved such a feat.</p><p>More than that though was the strange feeling of great power that seemed to be emanating from the very ground itself. This was a sacred place, a place that hummed with ancient magic.</p><p>Suddenly an orb flew past him and kept going until it reached the center of the stones. There it began to circle a dark figure that seemed almost to materialize at the center of the stones. Hiccup could just barely make out the outline of a person standing before him.</p><p>Gripping his blade tighter, he cautiously stepped forward. He quickly ignited his dragon blade and held it out before him so as to see better who or what stood before him.</p><p>It seemed to be a person wearing a dark cloak. The person was thinly built, and a good foot shorter then he. The figure stood with their back facing him.</p><p>"Who are you," he tried to sound as bold as he could, "why am I here?"</p><p>The person turned and Hiccup could clearly see it was a petit woman, but her face was still concealed by the shadow of her cloak.</p><p>"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock," the soft voice seemed to echo from all around him and not specifically from the hooded woman.</p><p>She slowly glided forward. He froze in both fear and awe. She stopped before him and held out a slender, feminine hand to him. Unsure of what to do, Hiccup reached forward to her as well. The woman took his hand gently in her's.</p><p>Hiccup could not explain the feelings that ran through him at the touch of her hand. It was like lighting striking his very soul. He was suddenly overcome by awestruck wonder and longing at the same time and it caused his heart to beat wildly in his chest. He gazed at her curiously as she pulled his hand forward and gently turned it to expose his palm. She then reached up slowly with her opposite hand and pressed something into his. She gently closed his fingers around the object and then pushed his hand firmly against his chest. She kept her hands over his for a long moment. He was struck by the sudden desire to pull her close to him, but he restrained himself.</p><p>The woman lifted one of her hands and placed it gently upon his cheek, causing his breath to catch in his throat.</p><p>"It's you," she whispered with heartfelt emotion in her voice "it's always been you, it's been you all this time." Hiccup gazed at her in confusion. Her words struck a cord in his heart. It felt as though the words she spoke held such meaning, such genuine emotion.</p><p>He reached up, gently covering the hand she had laid upon his face with his own. The feel of her soft hand in his made him tremble. He inadvertently leaned slightly forward. Though the shadow of her hood hid the majority of her face from view, he could just see her mouth and chin. All he wanted in that moment was to capture her perfect pink lips in a kiss, to pull her into his arms and never let her go. It seemed to take everything in him to stop himself from doing so. He could not explain nor understand the pull he felt toward this woman, this stranger.</p><p>"I...I don't understand," he questioned softly, "who are you? What is this?" Without another word the woman abruptly pulled her hands away, leaving Hiccup instantly longing for her delicate touch. She then slowly began to back away.</p><p>"No, wait...please," Hiccup called out desperately, "I...I need to know who you are, I...I don't know why you're here, what you need me to do?" The woman held up her index finger as if to silence him as she slowly vanished into the shadows. Hiccup opened his hand to reveal a small oval shaped iron pendent, on which was carved the Norse symbol for love. He flipped it over in his hand to reveal another symbol that he had never seen before. It seemed to be two intricately designed hearts woven together in a knot. He traced the symbol with his finger as he gazed at it curiously. He couldn't quite put his finger on why the symbol seemed so familiar to him. It was as if it were something he knew once but had long forgotten.</p><p>"Hiccup!"</p><p>Hiccup's eyes snapped opened and he sat up with a start. He found himself still sitting at his work bench with an array of maps and logs strewn across it. He touched his face where the woman's had been, it almost felt as if it still tingled where she had touched him. He quickly lifted the other hand that she had pressed the pendent into only to find nothing there. He sighed heavily as he tried to make sense of what he had just experienced.</p><p>"Just a dream," he murmured, "it was just a dream." He sighed in slight relief, though he still felt perturbed by the realness of the dream, and how he felt when the mysterious woman touched his hand.</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka's voice echoed as she burst into his study. Hiccup looked up at her as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned.</p><p>"There you are," she sighed, "your bed wasn't slept in, were you down here all night?"</p><p>"I must have dozed off while I was going over these old maps," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Well, I have some breakfast for you," she replied, "come up and eat at least."</p><p>"Yeah okay," Hiccup replied, "I'll be up in a minute."</p><p>After Valka left the room, Hiccup sat at his desk gazing into nothing as he tried to make sense of the strange dream. The image of the pendent still burned in his mind. He couldn't help but to feel there was some deeper meaning to it all. He quickly grabbed his sketch pad and drew the pendent as best he could remember. He gazed at the drawing intently as he traced the unknown symbol with his finger.</p><p>Later...</p><p>Hiccup piled his plate up with eggs and meat and plopped down at the table across from Valka.</p><p>"Thanks mom," he said as he shove a piece of bacon in his mouth, "you didn't have to do all this, I'm perfectly capable of making my own breakfast." Valka shrugged.</p><p>"I like to cook for you," she replied, maybe I just want to make up for all the times I couldn't." Hiccup grinned at her as he took another bite of his bacon. Valka returned the smile.</p><p>"So," she sighed as she changed the subject, "what are you up to today?" Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"The usual," he replied, "check in with Fishlegs, see if there is any Chief stuff I need to do today, then most likely check the archives again to see if I can find anything in our history about that island I found."</p><p>"You still haven't found anything from before the dragon war," Valka questioned.</p><p>"Not a thing," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Perhaps you really are the first to discover it," Valka replied, "mapping is a lot different now that we can see things from the air."</p><p>"That's true," Hiccup replied. He sat back and thought for a few moments.</p><p>"But the strange thing is," Hiccup replied, "I have found maps of the smaller islands around the same area I found the big island, but there is literally nothing on the bigger one. I can't imagine why we would map the smaller ones but not the biggest one. It's almost like it was left out purposely. I mean why would we do that?"</p><p>That is strange," Valka replied, "but maybe it wasn't purposeful, I mean we have spent a little over 300 years at war with the dragons, it's possible some of the archives were destroyed."</p><p>Hiccup leaned forward resting his chin upon his balled up fist.</p><p>"I guess that could also be a possibility," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Why are you taking such an interest in this new land," Valka questioned.</p><p>"I can't really explain it," Hiccup replied, "there is just something about that place. I don't know why, but I feel almost drawn to it. I guess I just have a good feeling about it, like maybe an alliance with them will be just what Berk needs. Valka nodded.</p><p>"Well you know," Valka replied, "your great great grandfather, Hiccup the first, became Chief just before the dragon war. Before the war our clan did voyage to many different lands. Perhaps you might find something in one of his journals."</p><p>"That's actually a great idea," Hiccup replied, "are they in the archive?"</p><p>"Actually no" Valka replied, "your father kept everything from all of your past grandfathers, dating all the way back to Halvar the Terrible. Each Chief in your lineage passed down their knowledge and experience to the next, did your father never show them to you?"</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup replied, "maybe once, when I was little, I...I don't really remember."</p><p>"Well, I'm sure they are still in the same place as before," Valka replied, "Your father was nothing if not predictable, I'll get them for you while you go catch up with Fishlegs."</p><p>"Thanks mom," Hiccup replied as he stood from the table. He leaned over to her and kissed her quickly on the cheek.</p><p>"I'll see ya later," he said as he headed for the door, "thanks for breakfast."</p><p>Hiccup headed out the door to search for Fishlegs. It had been about a week since Astrid left for her honeymoon and Fishlegs was filling in for her as the second in command. So far he had done great keeping Hiccup on top of things, Fishlegs was nothing if not efficient.</p><p>Hiccup found him in the town square talking with Ruffnut. He shook his head as he approached the couple. Over the past year, the two had become increasingly closer. It was often rare to find one without the other.</p><p>"Hey Fishlegs," Hiccup called out.</p><p>"Oh hey Chief," Fishlegs smiled.</p><p>"Ruffnut," Hiccup said with a nod. Ruffnut smiled.</p><p>"Hey Chief," she said. She turned her attention back to Fish, "I'll see ya later." She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek causing the man to blush slightly.</p><p>"See ya Ruffy wuffy," Fish replied as he gazed back at her. He continued to gaze at her as she turned and walked away. He turned back to see Hiccup smirking at him.</p><p>"What," Fish questioned.</p><p>"Ruffy wuffy," Hiccup questioned as he raised an eyebrow at him.</p><p>"What's wrong with that," Fishlegs replied defensively, "I'll have you know that pet names are a standard show of affection!"</p><p>"Nothing...nothing," Hiccup chuckled, "I'm just surprised she lets you get away with that. I mean this is Ruffnut we're talking about."</p><p>"You don't know her like I do," Fishlegs replied.</p><p>"Clearly," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"She may be tough and mean on the outside," Fishlegs continued, "but she has the heart of a soft fluffy bunny."</p><p>"Okay, okay," Hiccup replied putting his hands up to stop Fishlegs from continuing, "I seriously think for your safety and mine that you should probably never repeat what you just said...like to anyone...ever!"</p><p>"Duly noted," Fishlegs replied, "sorry, I just get carried away sometimes."</p><p>"Right," Hiccup replied, "well, what's on the old agenda today Fish?"</p><p>"Well you have a town meeting at ten," Fish replied, "some of the elders have questions about some of the trade deals you worked out with the neighboring clans."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Then dragon training with the new riders around noon," Fishlegs replied.</p><p>"Then what," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Well that's it for today," Fishlegs replied, "unless something comes up later."</p><p>"Great," Hiccup replied, "so, what, that gives us like three hours to kill before the town meeting."</p><p>"Uh, yeah, I guess so," Fishlegs replied.</p><p>"Great," Hiccup replied, "because I could really use your help with something."</p><p>"Sure," Fishlegs replied, "with what exactly?"</p><p>"You've studied all the ancient Viking symbols right," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Yes," Fishlegs replied proudly, "I'm fluent in most of the ancient symbols and runes."</p><p>"Have you ever come across this one," Hiccup pulled his sketchbook from his pocket and showed Fish the sketch of the strange symbol from his dream. Fishlegs took the book and studied the image closely.</p><p>"No," Fish replied, "I don't know that one, to be honest I don't even think it's Norse at all. Where did you find it?"</p><p>"I...I didn't," Hiccup replied, "I mean, not technically. I, uh, I mean...well, it's gonna sound a little strange."</p><p>"Well," Fishlegs sighed, "we've got three hours."</p><p>...</p><p>Later in the archives</p><p>...</p><p>Fishlegs sat quietly leafing through one of the many books on Viking runes and symbols. When he got to the last page, he closed the book with a defeated sigh.</p><p>"Hiccup, I cant find anything about that symbol," Fishlegs huffed, "is there anything else you can tell me about that dream?"</p><p>"No," Hiccup groaned, I've told you everything." He sighed heavily.</p><p>"Well," Fish sighed, "the only thing I can definitely tell you for sure is that symbol isn't Norse." Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest as he pondered Fish's words.</p><p>"If I knew where it came from," Fish replied, "I might be able to narrow it down. Was there any clues as to where you were in the dream that you can recall?"</p><p>"No, nothing," Hiccup replied, "it was just the middle of some random forest. Of course, the circle of stones seemed pretty significant. But I've never seen anything like that before, so I wouldn't even know the first place to look for it." Fish sighed as he contemplated what to do.</p><p>"Well I can see if I can find anything about any places that have stone circles," Fish replied, maybe we could narrow it down from there." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Well, looks like I need to head to that meeting now," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"I'll let you know if I come across anything," Fishlegs replied.</p><p>"Thanks," Hiccup replied, "oh and Fish..."</p><p>"Yeah," Fishlegs asked.</p><p>"Don't mention this to anyone, okay," Hiccup replied, "at least not until I figure it out."</p><p>"No problem Chief," Fishlegs replied.</p><p>"Even Ruffnut," Hiccup said firmly, "especially Ruffnut!"</p><p>"You have my word Hic," Fish replied.</p><p>"If you find anything," Hiccup said as he turned to leave, "come by my place later."</p><p>"Will do Chief," Fish replied.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. In Dreams</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 6</p><p>Merida awoke to the sound of whispering all around her. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked around in confusion. Her eyes widened when she saw dozens of flickering blue wisps swirling all around the inside of the stone circle. She stood slowly and began to walk to the center of the circle. As she moved forward the wisps began to move away from her.</p><p>"Lead me where ye will spirits," she said boldly. But the wisps only seemed to converge at the opposite end of the circle and seemed to purposely swirl around a specific spot. As she stepped cautiously forward she realized the wisps were swirling around a dark horned humanoid like figure that stood in the shadows only feet away from her. She gasped and stumbled back.</p><p>"Mairead," a man's voice whispered. Merida gazed at the figure in confusion and intrigue. Slowly the figure stepped forth from the shadows. Now standing in the light of the moon, Merida could see that it was not a horned creature, but a man wearing full armor and a horned viking's helm that covered his face from the nose up.</p><p>"Mairead," he whispered again in a voice that was wrought with emotion. He stepped closer to Merida. He was so close that she could see his green eyes gazing at her from beneath the mask with such intensity that it made her weak in the knees. She could feel her stomach doing flip flops as she stood frozen in place. Slowly he pulled his sword from its sheath. Startled by this, she began to panic, unsure of the strange man's intentions. She fumbled as she reached for an arrow from her quiver only to realize it wasn't there. Holding the hilt in both hands the man twirled the blade until it faced the ground. Suddenly he dropped to one knee and plunged the tip of the sword into the soft earth before her. He then bowed his head. He removed his armored glove and pulled something from his pocket then held his hand out before her. In his palm she saw an exact replica of her great great grandmother's pendent. In shock, Merida instinctively reached for the pendent that hung around her own neck, only to find it was missing completely.</p><p>"Mairead," he said again, "my heart is your's and always will be." His heartfelt words and the tenderness with which he spoke them to her made her heart skip and her breath catch in her throat.</p><p>With his other hand, he took her hand gently. She could feel the roughness of his skin as he tenderly grasped her hand in his. The moment their hands met, it felt as if her heart had been struck by lightning. She could feel her heart racing and her face flush. He gently placed the pendent in her hand and closed her fingers around it. He gazed up at her longingly with those intense green eyes that seemed to see right through to her very soul. But he did not smile. His expression, instead, seemed to be one of great pain and sadness. The very sight of him made Merida want to cry. As she looked upon him, she found herself longing to wrap her arms around him in an attempt to ease his suffering.</p><p>He slowly stood but kept her hand clasped gently in his. He continued to gaze at her with an intense longing emanating from his deep green eyes. Slowly he raised his other hand and gently touched the side of her face brushing the unruly curls behind her ear. She could feel goosebumps where his fingers had grazed her skin. He slowly leaned forward keeping his eyes locked with hers.</p><p>"I will wait forever if you'd be mine," he said.</p><p>Merida awoke with a start. She could still feel her heart racing as she sat up quickly and glanced around in confusion. She found herself still sitting on the ground at the standing stones. Her great great nana's journal lay open on the ground beside her. It was well after dark and only the light of the moon illuminated her surroundings. She quickly checked for her quiver and her pendent. She sighed in relief when she found both where she had left them.</p><p>"A dream," she sighed as she leaned back against the stone again, "it was only a dream.</p><p>"That's what I get for dozing off while reading that bloody journal." She sighed softly, but suddenly reality dawned on her.</p><p>"I'm late," she cried out as she jumped to her feet, "mum's gonna have my head!"</p><p>She quickly collected the journal and pulled herself up on Angus.</p><p>"Let's go Angus," she yelled as the horse began to gallup.</p><p>When she finally got home, it was well past dark and she anticipated her mother's inevitable wrath. She snuck through the kitchen and was almost to the stairs when she heard Elinor clear her throat. She turned back slowly to see her mother standing in the doorway to the study with arms crossed and a stern look on her face.</p><p>"Hi mum," she said sheepishly, "uh, I can explain." Her mother pointed to the study. With a heavy sigh, Merida headed into the room in defeat. Elinor quickly closed the door behind them and turned to face her daughter.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor huffed, "do ye know how worried I've been. I allow ye to leave the castle all day to yer heart’s content, but staying out past dark is dangerous for any young woman let alone a princess."</p><p>Merida groaned outwardly, "mum, ye know I can take care of myself...I'm not helpless."</p><p>"Merida ye may be an excellent shot with that bow, but ye've never been in a fight for yer life, ye never faced the likes of bandits or kidnappers or...or worse Vikings."</p><p>"I faced Mor'du," Merida spat defensively.</p><p>"Aye," Elinor replied, " more like ran from him, and ye barely escaped with yer life!" Merida sighed heavily as she flopped down into one of the plush chairs.</p><p>"I'm sorry mum," she sighed, "it was an accident."</p><p>"What happened," Elinor questioned, "were ye hurt?"</p><p>"No mum," she rolled her eyes as she sat forward and crossed her arms over her chest, "I fell asleep."</p><p>"I'm sorry," Elinor looked to Merida as if she had misunderstood her, "what was that."</p><p>"I said...I fell asleep mum," Merida repeated louder. Elinor began to chuckle.</p><p>"What on earth were ye doing that ye fell asleep in the middle of the woods?"</p><p>"I was, uh...reading," Merida replied.</p><p>"Merida we have an entire library in the castle."</p><p>"Uh, well mum," she reached for her satchel and pulled out the journal she had found, "I kinda found great great nana's journal."</p><p>"Merida," Elinor took the book and inspected it, "this is amazing, where on earth did you find it?"</p><p>"In her sitting room," Merida replied vaguely.</p><p>"I have to show this to yer father at once, " Elinor replied, "he'll be absolutely..."</p><p>"NO," Merida called out suddenly. Elinor turned to her daughter in confusion.</p><p>"See, uh...the thing is mum," Merida said as she took the book back from her mother, "it seems great great nana was a little different then what uh, then what dad may remember."</p><p>Elinor gazed at her daughter in curiosity.</p><p>"Was she involved in some sort of scandal," Elinor questioned in intrigue.</p><p>"I think she was in love with a Viking!" Merida exclaimed.</p><p>"In love...with a Viking," Elinor exclaimed, "well that's preposterous Merida, she was betrothed to yer great great grandfather long before the Vikings came." Merida smirked at her mother and raised an eyebrow at her.</p><p>"Oh my," Elinor replied, " that is scandalous!"</p><p>"And I'm fairly certain," Merida went on as she held up the charm around her neck," that this pendent is from the Viking boy...not great great grand da."</p><p>"What makes you think so,"Elinor questioned.</p><p>"Okay...well this may sound a little strange mum," Merida replied, "but I had a dream that a Viking gave the necklace to her, well I mean, technically he gave it to me. But I think he thought I was nana or maybe I was just seeing some sort of a memory or something. I don't really know, but, he called me Mairead, so I know he meant nana. He knelt down and said that his heart was mine, or nana's rather. The way he spoke was so sincere and he had these green eyes that were just so intense that it felt like...like he saw right through me, to my very soul!"</p><p>Elinor gazed at her daughter in intrigue as she described her dream.</p><p>"It felt so real Mum, "she sighed dreamily, "but then I woke up and I realized I was late and..."</p><p>"Merida," Elinor interrupted with a chuckle, "I never knew ye to be such a romantic."</p><p>"Mum," Merida scoffed, "I'm telling the truth!"</p><p>Elinor chuckled again, "ye fell asleep reading yer great great nana's scandalous journal, I think perhaps that it may have influenced that dream of yer's just a tad."</p><p>Merida rolled her eyes and smirked at her mother, "maybe a little, she admitted, "but it was still so real."</p><p>"It is curious though Merida," Elinor replied.</p><p>"What's that," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Yer pendent," Elinor replied motioning to the charm that hung around her neck, "I wonder it that other symbol is Viking?"</p><p>Merida's face lit up as a thought surfaced to her mind.</p><p>"Mum do ye think the reason the Vikings were banished had something to do with her falling for the Viking boy?"</p><p>"I'd say it's a good possibility" Elinor replied, "considering she was already betrothed when they met."</p><p>"What do we tell dad?"</p><p>"At the moment," Elinor paused, "nothing; we will need to do a little research to find out what really happened first."</p><p>Merida smiled at her mother, "I thought great great nana was the perfect princess," she said as she gazed up at the portrait above the fire place, "I like her even better now."</p><p>"Merida,” Elinor exclaimed.</p><p>"What," Merida replied.</p><p>"To bed with ye," Elinor replied, "we'll talk more about this tomorrow. Oh and Merida."</p><p>"Aye Mum," Merida replied.</p><p>"Lord Dingwall is to arrive tomorrow," Elinor replied, "he'll be staying with us a few days. So I expect ye to be on yer best behavior." Merida rolled her eyes as she audibly groaned.</p><p>"Wee Dingwall isn't coming is he," she whined.</p><p>"I assume so," Elinor replied, "but I don't know for certain."</p><p>"Just great," Merida groaned.</p><p>"Come now Merida," Elinor replied, "I'm sure he can't be that bad."</p><p>"Maybe not to ye," Merida replied, "yer not the one he's trying to impress all the time!" Elinor shook her head.</p><p>"It's only for a few days," Elinor replied, "I'm sure ye can handle it." Merida sighed heavily.</p><p>"Goodnight mum," Merida replied.</p><p>"Goodnight dear," Elinor replied.</p><p>As she headed to her room, Merida could not help but to think about the Viking in her dream. His deep green eyes were sure to haunt her sleep. The dream had felt so real, so tangible that she could barely contain the feelings that it had stirred in her heart. Was the spirit of the Viking reaching out to her thinking she was his lost love? Was the dream some sort of residual memory from the past? Did the will O' the wisps want her to uncover some truth lost to history? When she entered her room, she sighed heavily as she flopped back onto her bed and gazed up at the canopy above her. She didn't know how she would ever get to sleep with so many questions running through her head.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 7</p><p>All day, Hiccup could not stop thinking about the strange dream from the night before. Every free moment he had that day he was sketching something else in his notebook that he had remembered from his dream. He sketched everything from the great stone pillars to the tiny and mysterious blue flame-like spirit. He also sketched the mysterious woman. He tried his best to remember as much detail as possible in hopes it would help him figure out the meaning behind the dream or at the very least, give him some clue as to strange woman’s identity.</p><p>He sat now at his workbench in the smithy leafing through his sketchbook. He paused at the sketch of the mysterious woman, he gently traced the lines of the image with his fingers. He didn't know who or what she was, but he had a feeling that seeing her had some significant meaning. <br/>He flashed back to the moment she touched his hand. All at once the feelings of awe and longing came flooding back to his mind.</p><p>"Hey boy," Gobber's voice broke Hiccup from his thoughts, "it's late, what are you still doing in my smithy?"</p><p>"Just making some adjustments to the old leg," Hiccup replied as he closed the sketchbook and stuffed it back in his pocket.</p><p>"All finished now," he said as he stood up and bounced on his prosthetic leg, "good as new." Gobber shook his head and chuckled.</p><p>"You know, I could make you one of these too Gobber," Hiccup smiled.</p><p>"No thanks," Gobber replied, "that contraption is too complicated. I think I'll just stick with old reliable." He stomped his wooden leg on the ground.</p><p>"Suit yourself," Hiccup shrugged. He got up and headed to the door.</p><p>"Alright Hic," Gobber said, “will I see you tomorrow then?" Hiccup shook his head with a smile.</p><p>"Tomorrow is my first day off in a week," Hiccup replied, "and if I don't take Toothless flying, I'm pretty sure he'll roast me alive." Gobber chuckled.</p><p>"That wily dragon has got you wrapped around his tail fin, he has," Gobber chuckled.</p><p>"Yeah," Hiccup replied, "just don't tell him that; it might go to his head."</p><p>"See ya Chief," Gobber replied with a hearty chuckle.</p><p>"See ya Gobber," Hiccup said.<br/>As Hiccup began to walk home, his mind drifted to the strange dream once again. He couldn't understand why he couldn't stop thinking about it. He was suddenly startled by a hand on his shoulder.</p><p>"Hiccup," Fishlegs said. Hiccup relaxed when he recognized his old friend.</p><p>"Are you heading home," Fishlegs asked. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Sure am," he replied, " Did you find anything else out?" Fishlegs sighed dejectedly.</p><p>"Nothing," he replied, "I even asked Gothi."</p><p>"You told Elder Gothi," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"No details," Fish replied, "I just asked about the symbol that's all." Hiccup sighed in frustration.</p><p>"Well don't be discouraged Chief," Fish replied, "I still have a theory or two."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied, "why don't you come home with me, I have some other things I want to run by you."</p><p>"Sure," Fishlegs replied. When they finally reached Hiccup's house, they were greeted with the savory aroma of roasted meat.</p><p>"Hey mom," Hiccup called out as he headed in the door, "you still here?" Valka came out of the kitchen with a smile.</p><p>"Great your home," she replied. She turned her eyes to Fishlegs.</p><p>"Nice to see you again Fish," Valka smiled, "how's your mother?"</p><p>"Oh, uh, she's great Mrs. H," Fish smiled, "thanks for asking." Valka turned her attention back to Hiccup.</p><p>"Come sit," she smiled, "I made your favorite, lamb stew." Hiccup smiled awkwardly.</p><p>"What," Valka's smile faltered, "is it not your favorite anymore, you loved it when you were little."</p><p>"No...no mom it's fine," Hiccup replied with a smile, "you just...you don't have to do all this all the time."</p><p>"What," Valka questioned, "take care of my only son." Hiccup rolled his eyes playfully. He reached for her hand and squeezed it tightly.</p><p>"I just mean you don't need to fuss over me," Hiccup replied, "or make sure I eat, or clean my house. You do too much mom."</p><p>"Hiccup," she replied, "I'm your mother and I..., we missed out on so much time together. Doing things for you makes me feel like I...like I still have a place in your life. Besides I like mothering you." She chuckled. Hiccup smiled as he reached out to give Valka a warm hug.</p><p>"Thanks mom," he replied.</p><p>"Now," Valka said as she pulled away, "maybe lamb stew isn't your favorite anymore, but that's only because you haven't had mine in a long time!"</p><p>"Well I don't know about Hic," Fishlegs interrupted, "but I would love some lamb stew, it smells amazing!" Both Hiccup and Valka chuckled.</p><p>"Well, pull up a chair," Valka replied, "help yourself, there is plenty to go around." Fish happily served himself a bowl of the fragrant stew. Hiccup joined him followed by Valka.</p><p>"So Hic," Fish said with a mouth full of stew, "did you remember anything else about that dream?" Hiccup internally groaned, but kept silent for a long moment. Valka looked curiously between the two young men.</p><p>"Uh, I mean, uh," Fishlegs stammered, "did I say dream, cause I meant..."</p><p>"It's alright Fish," Hiccup sighed, "it's just my mom, besides maybe we could use another perspective." Fish smiled. Valka continued to glance back and forth between them with a baffled look on her face.</p><p>"Alright boys," Valka replied expectantly, "out with it." Hiccup smirked. He proceeded to tell her in detail about the strange dream he had the night before. Valka intently listened, seeming very intrigued by it all.</p><p>"I sketched some more things that I remembered," Hiccup said as he pulled out his sketchbook. He flipped through its pages until he found his most recent drawings. He showed them the blue spirit and the stone ring. He paused at the sketch of the mysterious woman once again.</p><p>"I'm not sure why," Hiccup said softly as he continued to gaze at the sketch, "but I...I feel like I know her somehow."</p><p>"But you said you never saw her face," Fish replied questioningly.</p><p>"Yeah, obviously I couldn't recognize her by her face," Hiccup went on, "but it was more like...like, how I felt when I saw her." Both Fishlegs and Valka gazed at Hiccup in intrigue as he spoke.</p><p>"And how I felt when she touched my hand, it felt like...like being zapped by a skrill! It sent a jolt right through me and my...my heart was beating so fast I thought it would burst right through my chest. It felt like every hair stood on end, like goosebumps. It...it was unlike anything I ever felt before and yet it...it was somehow...familiar at the same time." Hiccup shook his head.</p><p>"Does that make any sense," he questioned as he turned his gaze from the drawing back to Fish and Valka, "I mean am I crazy?" Fishlegs and Valka gazed at him in curiosity.</p><p>"If I didn't know any better Hiccup," Valka smiled, "I'd say your were smitten with this dream girl." Hiccup felt his face flush slightly. He sat back in his chair and sighed.</p><p>"Really mom," he said flatly, "smitten...with a figment of my imagination." Valka shrugged.</p><p>"What you're describing sounds a lot like love Hiccup," Valka replied.</p><p>"There could be something to this Hic," Fish interjected.</p><p>"Not you too," Hiccup huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"No...no hear me out Hic," Fish went on, "this could tie into one of my theory's. Hiccup sighed in annoyance.</p><p>"See the pendent that the woman gave you in the dream; it had the Viking symbol for love on it. The other symbol was two hearts woven together. It must have something to do with love as well." Hiccup leaned forward in his chair in interest.</p><p>"I guess that makes sense," Hiccup replied, "but what does it have to do with me?"</p><p>"Maybe it doesn't, per se," Fish replied, "maybe whoever or whatever it was that made itself known to you in this dream, was projecting its own emotions onto you." Hiccup sat in contemplation of Fish's words. He glanced up to Valka and noticed the shocked look displayed on her face.</p><p>"Mom, what is it?" He questioned.</p><p>"May I see the sketch," she replied quickly, "the one of the pendent."</p><p>"Yeah, "Hiccup replied as he quickly flipped to the image of the pendent he had drawn. Valka gazed at the image with a look of astonishment on her face.</p><p>"What...what is it mom," Hiccup asked. Valka looked back at her son. She silently reached to her neck and pulled a chain from beneath her shirt. She grasped the charm at the end of the chain tightly for a moment before holding it up before him. Hiccup's breath caught in his throat as he gazed upon the exact pendent he had seen in his dream.</p><p>"What...how...wh...where did you get this," Hiccup stuttered in shock and confusion.</p><p>"It was a gift from your father," Valka replied, "he gave it to me the day we were married." Hiccup blinked in confusion.</p><p>"But it's more than that Hiccup," Valka went on, "this pendent has been passed down four generations starting with your great great grandfather, Hiccup the first. He passed it to his son Hiccup the second. He then passed it to your grandfather, Ragnar the bold and then he passed it to your father. It's been tradition since your great great grandfather. Stoick said that the pendent is only to be given to the woman you love and are to marry. At the time Stoick told me that someday when we had a son he would pass it on to him as well when the time came." She carefully lifted the chain over her head, she then handed the pendent over to Hiccup.</p><p>"Maybe that time is now," Valka smiled with tear filled eyes." Hiccup held the pendent carefully in his hands gazing at it intensely. He was unable to fathom this tangible evidence of his dream.</p><p>"But I don't love anyone," Hiccup said solemnly.</p><p>"Not yet," Valka replied, "but maybe this dream of yours signifies the start of your journey. Maybe it's time to start looking for whoever it is you're meant to be with; your soul mate." Hiccup sat back in his chair still gazing intently upon the pendent as he contemplated his mother's words. He shook his head in denial.</p><p>"Come on," he replied disbelievingly, "do you really believe in that; soulmates,” He said, making mock quotations with his fingers.</p><p>"I do," his mother replied softly, "your father was mine."</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup replied skeptically, "what about everything else, the blue spirit and the stone ring, a...and..."</p><p>"Maybe they are all clues of where to find her," Fish interjected excitedly. Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Seriously Fishlegs," he scoffed.</p><p>"Well lets think about this for real Hic, when did all this dream stuff start," Fish questioned.</p><p>"Uh...I guess shortly after I got back from my scouting mission," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"You discovered that new island,"Valka replied, "just this morning you told me you felt drawn to that place, you said you had a good feeling about it. Hiccup did you see any strange stones on your fly-over, anything at all that could resemble the place you saw in your dream?" Hiccup thought for a few moments.</p><p>"No," he replied, "I mean nothing stood out to me anyway. I mean I would have remembered seeing something like that."</p><p>"Well you have to admit, it's pretty interesting that all this started after you found that island," Fish replied, "maybe you're supposed to find this woman there! Maybe she is your soul mate!"</p><p>"This is ridiculous," Hiccup huffed. Both Valka and Fish stared at Hiccup unamused.</p><p>"Oh come on," Hiccup said flatly, "you can't really believe this dream is some cosmic sign that I have to go...find a love life!" Valka smiled at her son, Fishlegs shrugged. Hiccup groaned dramatically.  "The both of you are incorrigible, you know that,” he nearly growled, “ever since Astrid's wedding you've been hinting that I need to find someone too. It doesn’t matter how many times I tell you that I don't need anyone. I'm perfectly fine on my own!"</p><p>"What about your dream Hiccup," Valka questioned pointedly.</p><p>"Uh..., it was just a stupid dream," Hiccup replied, as he crossed his arms over his chest defiantly, "it was just my subconscious telling me what you've already been putting in my head all this time!"</p><p>"If you really believe that, how do you explain the pendent," Valka questioned.</p><p>"This," Hiccup replied as he held up the charm and dangled it in front of Valka, "is a coincidence."</p><p>"Hiccup there is no way you could have known about the pendent," Valka replied, "you drew it exactly, how do you explain that?"</p><p>"Well maybe it's just some sort of repressed memory," Hiccup went on, "I must have seen it on you when I was little and forgotten about it." He placed the charm down on the table in front of her.</p><p>"Hiccup," Valka replied as she shook her head.</p><p>"It's your's Mom," Hiccup said softly, "it was a gift from Dad to you. I don't need it and I'm not gonna take it from you." Valka gazed at her son as she placed her hand over the pendent.</p><p>"It was only temporarily mine son," Valka replied," it was always meant for you." She slowly slid the charm back to Hiccup.</p><p>"Deny it if you will Hiccup," Valka replied, "you know in your heart that this dream has meaning. Now, I can only speculate on that based on what you, yourself have already said. Whatever meaning this dream holds, it's for you and you alone to figure it out. But, I urge you, do not dismiss it simply because you fear it's meaning."</p><p>"I don't fear a dream, "Hiccup scoffed.</p><p>"No," Valka replied, "but you do fear love." He gazed at his mother silently, her words swirling through his mind.</p><p>"Uh...I should probably go," Fish said awkwardly as he excused himself, "I'll just...let myself out, thanks for dinner Mrs. H. Uh...see ya Hic." He quickly headed for the door. Hiccup sighed as he leaned against the back of his chair and gazed back at his mother once again.</p><p>"Good job scaring Fishlegs off," Hiccup smirked. Valka's serious face broke into a half smile as she chuckled softly. Hiccup sighed heavily once again. He remained silent for a few long moments.</p><p>"I'm not afraid of love mom," Hiccup replied, "I just, I...I've had enough of it. Besides, there are more important things to worry about than...than finding my soul mate." Valka reached out and affectionately caressed his stubbled cheek.</p><p>"Fate is a funny thing," Valka replied, "it's mysterious, it's illusive, but it's always there. Some people spend their whole lives chasing it, but sometimes Hiccup, sometimes we meet our fate on the very road that we take to avoid it."</p><p>Valka stood and began collecting the dishes leaving Hiccup to his thoughts. He sighed as he leaned forward on his elbows and gazed down at the pendent that still lay upon the table. His mind flashed back once more to the mysterious woman and the undeniable feelings he felt when she touched his hand. He still did believe the dream held meaning, but his pride was urging him to deny what he already knew in his heart. He sighed heavily as he picked up the pendent and headed to his study. He flopped down into the chair beside his desk and gazed at the pendent once again. He leaned forward resting his chin upon his hand. He rolled his eyes and sighed once more as he draped the chain around his neck. He then tucked the pendent into the collar of his shirt. <br/>As he leaned back in his chair once more, he suddenly noticed the old trunk that sat in the corner of the room. He remembered earlier Valka mentioned bringing out the trunk that held his great great grandfather's things so he could look through his old maps and journals.</p><p>"Great," Hiccup muttered to himself, "a distraction."</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Discovery</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 8</p><p>Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup had spent most of the night going through every map and journal in his great great grandfather's trunk. One of the many things he had discovered was that he and Hiccup the first shared many similarities. For instance, his grandfather was a great inventor, much like he himself. Hiccup came across a number of interesting blueprints and designs drawn up in great detail. He discovered his grandfather was also a talented sketch artist. Hiccup found that his ancestor had drawn nearly everything he observed, often sketching people places and things that interested him on his many travels. Much like Hiccup did on his scouting missions. Hiccup the first also observed and catalogued multiple types of dragons and even contributed his sketches to the dragon manual. Hiccup the first was also an apprentice to the blacksmith when he was just a boy and had become an expert weaponsmith.</p><p>Besides the interesting details about his ancestor, Hiccup also discovered that during the time before the dragon war, the Hairy Hooligan tribe was considered a band of legendary dragon hunters. They were often hired by kings and chieftains to rid their lands of dragons.</p><p>Hiccup's search, albeit interesting, was ultimately for naught as he found absolutely nothing of the island which he had recently discovered. He could only conclude that either he truly was the first of his tribe to find it or the evidence, if ever any existed, must have long been lost to history.</p><p>Once again, Hiccup awoke suddenly to find himself sitting at his workbench in his study. He yawned as he stretched his arms over his head. He stood up groggily from his work bench chair, still feeling the affects from his poor nights sleep. For the second night in a row he'd had the dream of the mysterious woman, yet he was no closer to any answers as to who she was nor what the dream meant. He sighed heavily and began collecting all the maps and journals to put back into the trunk. When he had finished cleaning up, he took the trunk and started heading up the stairs with it. Suddenly he heard the unmistakable stomping of his favorite, yet most impatient dragon.</p><p>"I hear ya bud, " he called out, "give me a few minutes okay." Just as he got to the top of the stairs, Toothless bounded through the door and headed toward his rider.</p><p>"No...no...no bud," Hiccup cried out, "wait til I'm..." Before Hiccup could finish, the dragon pounced on him knocking him back down the stairs with the trunk in hand. He landed on his back with a thud on the floor of his study. The trunk crashed to the ground a mere foot from his face in a cloud of papers and splintered wood.</p><p>"Off the stairs," Hiccup groaned. He sat up and glared at the dragon. With ears back and eyes wide, Toothless sheepishly cowered behind the door at the top of the stairs.</p><p>"Really, Toothless," Hiccup groaned as he glared up at him, "outside...Now!" He could hear the patter of the dragons large feet as he scampered quickly back outside.</p><p>"Insufferable dragon," he huffed as he began to clean up the mess. He carefully lifted what was left of the trunk. As he flipped the trunk right side up once again he noticed something strange. The bottom of the trunk was cracked but there was something hidden underneath.</p><p>"What is that," he muttered to himself. He carefully pulled the bottom panel up.</p><p>"A false bottom," he muttered. He found more journals and maps hidden in the very bottom of the trunk. He pulled out one of the folded maps. When he unfolded it he was shocked to discover the very island he had come across just a week prior. Written on the top of the map was the word DunBroch.</p><p>"Are you kidding me," Hiccup chuckled, "It's been literally under my nose the whole time!"<br/>He excitedly laid the map out flat upon the floor and began to study it closely. He could see the castle and village roughly drawn exactly where he had marked them on his own map. He noticed a circle drawn in the middle of the forest with the words 'Standing stones' written beside it. A waterfall was drawn a little ways north of the circle captioned 'Fire Falls.' He quickly pulled his own map out to compare the two.</p><p>"Hiccup," he heard his mother calling to him. "Hiccup are you here. Toothless is outside, and he's acting nervous."</p><p>"Down here," Hiccup called out. He could hear his mother's footsteps as she headed down the stairs.</p><p>"Oh my," Valka gasped when she saw the mess, "what happened?"</p><p>"I found it mom," Hiccup replied excitedly as he motioned to the old map. Valka's face broke into a smile.</p><p>"That is amazing, Hiccup," she exclaimed," Was it in the trunk?"</p><p>"Well, that's the weird thing," Hiccup replied, "it was actually hidden...under a false bottom in the trunk, along with a few journals and other papers."</p><p>"That is strange," Valka replied, "I wonder why he would have hidden it?" Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"Good question," Hiccup replied, as he got back on his feet. He bent down and picked up one of the journals. "I wonder if we can find any answers in here." Valka began to sift through the rest of the papers as Hiccup leafed through the pages of the journal. He found that the book was mostly full of drawings. He found sketches of all of the land in question, a sketch of the castle of DunBroch, a view of the town and its people. There was a beautiful waterfall, cascading down from a towering cliff, and the ancient ruins of a castle. He paused suddenly when he found an all too familiar image, a ring of large ancient stones, the exact ones he had seen in his dream. The caption under the image read. 'Standing stones.'</p><p>"Wait...what," Hiccup muttered in surprise, "it's real!?" He gazed at the image in disbelief.</p><p>Valka turned her attention back to Hiccup in intrigue.</p><p>"This is it," he said firmly, "this is the place I saw in my dream and...and it's right smack in the middle of the island I found." He pointed to the circle drawn in the middle of the forest on his grandfather's map.</p><p>"Hiccup this is incredible," Valka replied. He continued to flip through the pages of the journal more eagerly. He stumbled upon the exact image of the blue flamed spirit. He could feel his heart racing with intrigue as he flipped hurriedly forward. It seemed his search for information about this new land and his search for answers about his dream had turned out to be one in the same. His heart froze when he came upon the sketch of a beautiful young girl. She was stunning, with long flowing curly hair and nearly hypnotic eyes. She wore a long gown with a dark cloak over her shoulders and she was clearly not a Viking. But the detail that shocked him the most was the all too familiar pendent that hung around her neck. He audibly gulped at the sight of her and felt as if his mouth had gone suddenly dry. As he gazed upon the sketch, he couldn't help but flash back to the woman from his dream. He could almost hear her voice and feel the touch of her hand. Could this be her? He sat back against his desk and continued to gaze at the sketch. How could this actually be?</p><p>"What," Valka questioned in concern of Hiccup's noticeable reaction, "what did you find?"</p><p>"I...I can't explain it...but I," Hiccup replied in a shocked tone, "I think it's her."</p><p>"Who," Valka questioned in confusion.</p><p>"Her," Hiccup replied, "her...the...the girl from my dream." Valka looked at him in confusion. Without another word he held out the journal to his mother. She took the journal in her hands and gazed at the sketch of the young woman.</p><p>"She has the pendent," Valka replied in surprise,"Hiccup this is not your great great grandmother."</p><p>"Yeah no kidding," Hiccup replied, "what do you think it means?"</p><p>"I don't know," Valka answered truthfully, "Stoick never knew his great grandfather in life, all he ever knew about Hiccup the first was from stories that his father told about him. As far as the pendent is concerned, Stoick's father only told him that his father, Hiccup the second had given him the pendent when it was time for him to chose a bride. He told him of the tradition that was started by Hiccup the first to only give the pendent to your one true love. When the time came for Stoick, your grandfather, Ragnar the Bold, passed it to him with the same instruction.</p><p>"So, if this woman had the pendent," Hiccup questioned, "then could she have been great great grandfather's true love?"</p><p>"That's a good question Hiccup," Valka replied, "If it's true, I wonder why he married your great great grandmother when his heart belonged to another?" Hiccup could feel a pit in his stomach forming as his mother spoke. As he continued to gaze at the image of the mysterious woman, a feeling of sorrow seemed to pull at his heart.</p><p>"Maybe something happened to her," Hiccup replied solemnly as he gazed at the drawing, "maybe...maybe he lost her." Hiccup couldn't put his finger on why, but as he spoke those words his heart seemed flooded with a deep melancholy feeling. Almost like the feeling of a broken heart. He turned his gaze back to Valka.</p><p>"This has to be what this is all about," Hiccup said with determination in his voice, "maybe...maybe I need to find out what happened, maybe that's why she reached out to me!"</p><p>"Do you really believe the woman from your dream could be the mystery girl in this drawing, " Valka questioned.</p><p>"It...it has to be," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean she's wearing the pendent, what other explanation could there be?" He quickly collected all the maps journals and papers that had been hidden and began to pack them in his satchel. He then folded his own map and put it with the others.</p><p>"What are you doing Hiccup," Valka asked.</p><p>"I have to go back," Hiccup replied firmly, "I..I have to follow where this leads, I..I have to figure this out."</p><p>"You're going now," Valka asked.</p><p>"I need to...I...," Hiccup paused as something caught his eye. He moved past Valka quickly. He bent down to pick up a drawing from the floor. He gazed at it in disbelief and intrigue.</p><p>"What is it Hiccup," Valka asked. Without a word Hiccup laid the paper down upon his work bench. He sat down in the chair and quickly lifted the pendent from his neck. Valka watched in curiosity.</p><p>"It's a blueprint," Hiccup said as his gaze flipped back and forth between the drawing and the pendent, "he designed it with some sort of a hidden compartment."</p><p>"You mean the pendent is actually a...locket," Valka questioned as she watched over his shoulder.<br/>Hiccup nodded, "I just have to figure out how to open it." As Hiccup held the oblong shaped pendent in his fingers he carefully twisted one side upwards diagonally until it came back together with the other half but now formed the shape of a heart. He then slid the face of the heart upward revealing the hidden compartment.</p><p>"Amazing," Valka whispered, " in all the years I've worn it, I never knew."</p><p>Inside the hidden compartment there was a small braided lock of fiery red hair. Hiccup carefully removed braid and examined it. He pulled out the journal once again and opened it to the sketch of the woman. He gently lay the lock of hair against the image of her face. He gazed at the image in amazement and intrigue. There was no question in his mind, the woman was real, not just a figment of his imagination. He closed his eyes and tried to picture her in life. He imagined her pale complexion, draped by long fiery curls, eyes blue...or maybe green gazing straight into his soul, her pale pink lips curled up into a smile that could melt a man's heart.<br/>All at once the feelings from his dream came flooding back to him. Hiccup sat back in his chair and took a deep breath. The strong emotions he felt as he thought of this woman baffled him. He could not understand why he felt so drawn to this woman that he didn't even know and thus far had only seen in his dreams.<br/>Perhaps it was his great great grandfather's spirit that was driving him to find the truth and his were the feelings that Hiccup felt so strongly now. Whatever the case, the only way he could figure this all out, was to return to the land of DunBroch.<br/>...</p><p>"Merida</p><p>Merida awoke with a start, she sat up quickly and looked around her room in confusion for a brief moment. When reality came upon her she groaned and rolled her eyes as she flopped back down upon her soft pillow. It was the third time she awoke after having had the strange dream about the Viking and still she was no closer to figuring it out. She gazed up at the canopy above her bed as she contemplated the dream once again. Nothing was different, there were no new details that she'd missed from before, and the Viking didn't do or say anything differently then the last two dreams. As before the one detail that haunted her the most were his intense green melancholy eyes that seemed to peer into her very soul. She couldn't figure out why she kept seeing this vision over and over again, nor what the significance of the vision could be. No matter how much she thought about it, the dream continued to baffle her. Clearly she was missing something, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what. She and her mother had been to the archives and still could find nothing about the Vikings of Berk nor their banishment. It was almost as if they'd been erased from Dunbroch history completely.<br/>The only real proof she had was word of mouth from her father's story and her great great grandmother's journal. It was very strange for the archives to be missing what seemed, at least to her, to be such a crucial portion of Dunbroch history. Unless of course it was all just a story that Mairead had told her great grandson and nothing more. Merida guessed that could be a possibility but then there would be no explanation for the journal, or the sketchbook, or the mysterious lock of hair that was contained within the pendent. Also there was the fact that the wil o' the wisp had led her to her discovery of the journal in the first place. Clearly the wisps were leading her to find some truth lost to history, but what?</p><p>She sat up once more. She threw her soft blankets off of her and stretched her arms over her head. She got up and headed over to her window and threw open the curtains. She inhaled the crisp morning air and exhaled slowly as she gazed out over Dunbroch. She smiled to herself in content. She swore she had the best view of her homeland from her chamber window. Her smile faded and she sighed heavily as her eyes fell upon the Dingwall longship in the harbor.<br/>She hated it when any of the lords came to visit. Mostly because she was expected to act as a princess should, cater to their guests, stay put in he castle and barely had any time to herself at all. She hadn't always felt that way though. When she was a wee lass she remembered being excited with all the visitors, and happy that she could play with kids her own age for once, even if they were all boys. When she got a little older the boys began to treat her like an annoying little sister teasing her and leaving her out of games that were just for 'boys.' This infuriated Merida to no end. But she turned her anger into determination and she strived to be the best at everything she did. She'd then compete with those spoiled boys every chance she got, much to the dismay of her mother. Then when she became a teen she noticed the boys treated her much differently then before. They tried to show off their brute strength and to impress her with their accomplishments and fighting skills. She remembered one time when she was thirteen Ryan Macintosh tried to kiss her and she punched him square in the jaw. She was grounded from riding Angus for a week after that.</p><p>Merida sighed again as she let the far off memories of the past slip from her mind. The good thing about this visit was that wee Dingwall had stayed home so the most she had to deal with was Lord Dingwall's exaggerated tales of his son's feats, which were already bad enough. In five days time Lord Dingwall would soon leave but until then she'd still have to act the part of the proper princess.<br/>She turned from the window and walked over to her armoire. She chose a simple hunter green gown. She slipped it on quickly over her kirtle and then fastened her quiver at her hip. She hoped after breakfast she'd have a small amount of time to take Angus out for a ride. But, of course, that all depended on what her mother's plans for the day would be. She grabbed her satchel and cloak and headed out of the room.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup stood beside Toothless in his full armored flight suit as he finished up strapping the saddle to Toothless' back. Next he attached the saddlebag of supplies he'd need for his journey to Dunbroch to the back of the saddle.</p><p>"Are you sure about this Hiccup," Fishlegs questioned. Hiccup turned to Fish and grinned.</p><p>"I'm sure that the only way I'm going to find any answers is by going back to this Dunbroch place," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"No, I mean leaving me in charge," Fish said in uncertainty.</p><p>"You're my second in command Fish," Hiccup replied, "taking over while I'm gone is part of the job description."</p><p>"Uh...I think you mean temporary second in command," Fish replied, "I really don't feel all that qualified to take over as Chief completely." Hiccup shook his head as he continued to stock Toothless' saddle.</p><p>"You'll be fine Fish," Hiccup replied, "I wouldn't have chosen you to fill in for Astrid if I didn't think you were fit to carry out all her duties, including this one."</p><p>"Yes but Hic," Fishlegs protested, "I don't know..."</p><p>"Look, Astrid will be back in like two days," Hiccup replied, "I think you can manage two days of being Chief, besides my mom is here to help too."</p><p>"Then why don't you just wait until she gets back to leave," Fishlegs inquired. Hiccup sighed heavily. He could wait two more days, but having to explain to Astrid where he was going and why was the last thing he wanted to deal with.</p><p>"Because Fish," he replied, "I can't explain it, I just, I need to go now."</p><p>"And what exactly am I supposed to tell Astrid when she gets back," Fishlegs asked as he crossed his arms over his chest. Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"I don't know Fish," Hiccup huffed, "tell her the truth if you want, I don't care." Hiccup replied matter of factly.</p><p>"Oh, you mean I can tell her that you're heading to this new island in search of your dream girl," Fish grinned.</p><p>"First of all" Hiccup huffed, "that dream girl has probably been dead for the past hundred years at least, and second I'm only going to Dunbroch to find out what happened to her and my great great grandfather while he was there, none of which really has anything to do with me, or soul mates or...or love at all!"</p><p>"Right," Fish replied flatly, "If that's true then why are you so eager to leave before Astrid gets back?" Hiccup rolled his eyes again and groaned as he turned away and continued his adjustments to Toothless' saddle.</p><p>"Is it because you want to avoid telling her yourself," Fish questioned.</p><p>"I'm not avoiding anything," Hiccup groaned in aggravation, "why would I, what would be the point? I mean, what would it matter anyway? This is has nothing to do with her! Believe it or not Fish, not everything I do is because of Astrid." Hiccup turned back to Fishlegs once again. Fish smirked at him knowingly. Hiccup groaned in aggravation and rolled his eyes again.</p><p>"Okay look, you know how she is," Hiccup went on, "she...she questions me about everything I do, I just, I don't want to deal with her about this. This is none of her business and I don't need her butting in and telling me her opinion about it!"</p><p>"Avoiding," Fishlegs replied, "as usual."</p><p>"Whatever Fish," Hiccup sighed, "I'm still going."</p><p>"Not without saying goodbye to me I hope" Valka called out. Hiccup turned and smiled at his mother.</p><p>"Of course not," he grinned. He walked over to her.</p><p>"Do you have everything you need," she questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Pretty sure I remembered everything," Hiccup replied, "food, water, sleeping bag, weapons, clean underwear in case of an emergency." Valka burst into laughter.</p><p>"I'm good mom," Hiccup chuckled, "believe it or not this not my first trip."</p><p>"Well, I guess you better go then," Valka replied, "may you see the way, wherever the journey takes you."</p><p>"Thanks mom," he replied. Valka smiled warmly up at him. He wrapped his arms around her in a quick hug. She smiled as he pulled away. He quickly mounted Toothless and gazed down at his mother.</p><p>"Remember, keep an open mind and an open heart Hiccup," Valka called up to him, "and fate will be sure to find you." Hiccup nodded and grinned at her one last time before he slipped his helmet on.</p><p>"Alright bud," he said as he leaned down to the dragons ear, "let's go!" With that Toothless took off into the sky, headed South toward Dunbroch.</p><p>"Well...now what," Fishlegs sighed.</p><p>"Now we wait," Valka sighed as she watched Toothless grow smaller on the horizon, "and pray that Hiccup finally finds what he's been looking for."</p><p>"Do you still think the dream is about him finding his soul mate," Fishlegs questioned. Valka turned to Fishlegs and smiled.</p><p>"It doesn't really matter what I think," Valka replied, "this is about Hiccup, and whatever he believes."</p><p>"Yeah well, because of his quest for meaning he has left me in charge of Berk," Fish whined. Valka chuckled.</p><p>"You'll survive Fish," she replied, "I have full confidence in your leadership. Besides, I do know a thing or two about helping to run a village."</p><p>"Well then, as my first order of business as chief," Fishlegs replied, "I'm appointing you as my second in command."</p><p>"It would be my honor," she replied</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. The Truth About Princesses, Dragons, and Knights in Shining Armor</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I decided to incorporate scottish slang for moments when Merida is flustered, or mad. I used the english to scottish slang translator at scotranslate.com Though I did make minor adjustments with some terms so it could still be basically understood by all.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 9</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>It had been nearly 3 days since Hiccup started his journey. He pushed Toothless to go as fast as he could, taking minimal breaks between in hopes to reach DunBroch in record time. Now the island was within his view with practically a day to spare. Hiccup was pleased with their time but Toothless was becoming cranky.</p><p>"Finally," Hiccup sighed as his eyes took in the sight before him. Toothless groaned.</p><p>"See bud," Hiccup replied, "we're here already, we just have to find a good place to land." He pulled out his grandfather's map and examined it.</p><p>"Okay," he sighed, " the castle and village are there and we don't want to scare the locals but we should find a good place to get our bearings; maybe higher ground so we can get a view of where we are..." Toothless groaned again impatiently.</p><p>"Alright, alright," Hiccup replied, "ah perfect, there at the hanging valley with the waterfall. It's perfect bud, it's a high cliff. We will be outta sight, you can take a break and I'll scout for a place to make camp and maybe even get a glimpse of the ring of stones."</p><p>Toothless whined.</p><p>"Right and we will get something to eat too," Hiccup replied distractedly. Toothless rolled his eyes as he flew on.</p><p>...</p><p>Merida</p><p>...</p><p>Merida had a good feeling about the coming day as she headed to the dining room in her usual fashion. Her mother had promised her a day to herself finally after near a week of being bound to the castle during Lord Dingwall's visit. She happily cut through the kitchen humming to herself as she snatched several apples and a sweet roll or two on the way. She stuffed the treats in her satchel and made her way to the dining hall. She couldn't quite put her finger on why, but she felt as if something exciting was going to happen. Perhaps it was the fact that the wisps had appeared to her once again after so many years. Or the excitement of discovering her great great nana's secret life. Whatever the reason she found herself positively ready to welcome whatever excitement this day had in store for her.</p><p>"Mornin' dear," Elinor greeted.</p><p>"Mornin' Mum," Merida replied, "where is Dad this morn'?"</p><p>"He had a late night what with Lord Dingwall visiting he was up till the wee hours," Elinor replied, "he is still sleeping...I didn't have the heart to wake him. And yer brothers have already come and gone." Merida shrugged and slumped down into one of the large wooden chairs as she bit into one of the shiny red apples.</p><p>"Where are ye off to today dear," Elinor asked noticing Merida's satchel and bow beside her.</p><p>"Nowhere really," Merida replied with a full mouth.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor replied, "will ye chew yer food before ye speak." Merida smirked and rolled her eyes. She swallowed the bite of apple.</p><p>"I'll probably just practice my archery," she replied, "I haven't practiced in days."</p><p>"So long as ye remember..."</p><p>"To be home before dark," Merida said at the same time as her mother, "I know, I know." Elinor gave her daughter a stern look.</p><p>"Mum...I swear...I'll be home before dark and not a second later!"</p><p>"Well best ye go then," Elinor smiled, "before Angus gets restless." Merida smiled at her mother. They had come a long way since the bear incident and Merida found they had only grown closer as time went on. She began to collect her things to head out.</p><p>"Oh and Merida," Elinor said. Merida turned her attention to her mother once again.</p><p>"I'm going to see if I can find any thing more about the viking dragon hunters, there must be something recorded somewhere."</p><p>"Great," Merida replied, "we'll solve this mystery yet."</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>It was late afternoon by the time Hiccup and Toothless arrived in Dunbroch. Hiccup now stood at the edge of the cliff peering out at the landscape below. The lush green land was beautiful and vast; and far different from Berk. He couldn't help feeling there was something special about this place. Just being there was strangely familiar to him, it felt almost like dejavu in a way. He glanced down at the map he held in his hand.</p><p>The standing stones should have been a little ways South of where he stood. He had hoped to get a glimpse of them from this vantage point but alas the forest was much too dense. He sighed as he folded the map and stuffed it back in his pocket.</p><p>"Alright bud," Hiccup sighed," we are just gonna have to look for the stones on foot. The forest is just too dense to see them from the air." Toothless started to protest in dragon tongue.</p><p>"Hey don't be like that," Hiccup replied, "look I know you're hungry we'll get some fish on the way, see," he pointed, "there is a river running South. It's literally on the way." Toothless grumbled a little but lowered his body to let his rider on. Hiccup replaced his helmet strapping it under his chin and hopped onto Toothleess' back. The dragon gently glided down from the tall cliff.</p><p>Once upon the ground, Hiccup and Toothless started their journey South in hopes of finding the ring of stones. Hiccup hoped that if he could find the stones that maybe he would discover some clues that would lead him to whatever truth fate seemed to be calling him to find.</p><p>Hiccup silently took in the beautiful scenery all around him as they made their way through the forest. He definitely could see the appeal that this land seemed to have for Hiccup the first. It was green and full of life. The trees were large and towering. Birds were chirping overhead and every once in a while he'd see small woodland creatures scurrying about. He thought if Berk were a little more like DunBroch it might be the perfect place to harbor Dragons.</p><p>As they continued on, Hiccup took notice of an old weather worn wooden target that was littered with arrows hanging from one of the trees. As he glanced around curiously, he noticed a beaten path and multiple arrow littered targets hanging from the trees above and seemed to follow the path into the woods. His curiosity piqued, Hiccup began to lead Toothless in the same direction.</p><p>"Looks like some sort of training course," Hiccup mumbled to himself. He could see multiple hoof prints in the dirt below.</p><p>"Their warriors train on horseback," Hiccup muttered. Suddenly he could hear the sound of heavy hooves striking the ground in the distance.</p><p>"And it sounds like they are headed this way bud," Hiccup said, "we better get outta sight unless we want to be target practice." Toothless and Hiccup ducked behind the thick brush beside the path and waited for horse and rider to pass. As the horse grew closer, Hiccup heard a whistling sound and a ping as an arrow whizzed overhead and struck the target that he had just been looking at only moments before.<br/>A massive black horse barreled past him as it galloped along the trail. Hiccup saw that its rider was a cloaked figure with delicate hands, but deadly accurate aim. He was intrigued. He had expected the rider to be a warrior or a soldier but the rider was surprisingly petite which was only accentuated all the more by the size of the horse on which they rode upon.</p><p>"Come on bud," he urged the dragon to head along the same path at a somewhat fair distance. He was impressed with the rider's shooting skills and the ease with which they hit every target even while in motion. He thought someone so skilled on a horse could probably be all the more formidable on a dragon. He brought Toothless to a halt when the sound of the horse's hooves stopped. He could hear rushing water near by and assumed the rider had stopped to rest. Feeling extremely curious about the intriguing rider, he dismounted Toothless and headed in the direction that the horse and rider had gone. All the while he kept hidden in the brush. As he crept closer he could hear the rider cooing the horse.</p><p>"Good boy Angus," a women's voice with a heavy accent spoke gently, "time for a break."</p><p>'A woman rider,' Hiccup thought to himself. He stepped forward slightly until he could just see her. She stood by the large horse, running her delicate fingers through its long dark mane. He could see she wore a navy blue cloak over a hunter green gown. He could not help but feel slightly reminiscent of the mysterious woman from his dream. She reached into a satchel that hung at her hip and pulled out two apples. One she handed to the horse and the other she took a bite of herself. She made her way over to a large stone by the edge of the stream. She sat down, pulled a book from her satchel and began to read. He gazed at her intently, but he couldn't quite make out her face beneath the shadow of her hood.</p><p>Suddenly, hungry and impatient, Toothless started to nudge Hiccup's elbow.</p><p>"Not now bud," Hiccup whispered as he shooed the dragon away. But Toothless was insistent. He nudged Hiccup again with more persistence. Hiccup turned to the dragon in annoyance.</p><p>"Hold on Toothless," Hiccup whispered a little more loudly than he intended. Suddenly an arrow whizzed right by Hiccup's face narrowly missing before striking the ground mere inches from his foot.</p><p>"Oh shit," Hiccup said as he fell back in surprise. He stared at the arrow sticking out of the ground with wide eyes.</p><p>"Show yourself," the girl called out angrily in a heavy accent. Toothless began to growl.</p><p>"Whoa bud, no," Hiccup said as he pushed the dragon back, "I'll handle this okay, just stay."</p><p>"Show yourself now," the girl yelled out, "or my next arrow won't miss!" Hiccup pulled the arrow from the ground and stood slowly from his hiding place. He raised his hands up in surrender. She stood glaring at him from beneath her hood with another arrow notched and pointed in his direction.</p><p>"Look," he said calmly. He held his hands out as he slowly placed the arrow he held in his hand on the ground in front of him. He stood slowly and took a few steps forward.</p><p>"Not another step," she said firmly.</p><p>"It's okay," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean you no harm." He cautiously took another step forward. Immediately an arrow struck the ground at his feet. As he jumped back his metal foot caught on a protruding tree root and he stumbled backward hitting the ground with a thud. Before he could get to his feet again, Toothless leapt from behind the trees between the girl and Hiccup. The dragon glared at the girl and bared his teeth as he let out a deep and terrifying growl.<br/>In shock the girl accidentally loosed her notched arrow. It whizzed past the dragon's face and struck the tree behind him. Toothless turned to the arrow, he then turned back to the girl and roared loudly startling her. In fear, she stumbled backward falling hard upon the ground and dropping her bow in the process. The dragon lurched forward. The girl scootched back while scrambling for her bow. Once in hand, she clumsily tried to notch another arrow.</p><p>The second Hiccup was on his feet he jumped between the dragon and the girl.</p><p>"Toothless...No," he cried out. Toothless continued to growl as he glared past Hiccup.</p><p>"Bud," Hiccup said calmly continuing to hold his hands up before the dragon, "look at me." Toothless eyes darted between Hiccup and the girl but he continued to growl. Hiccup removed his helmet and gazed up at the dragon.</p><p>"Look at me Toothless," he said firmly. Reluctantly Toothless looked at Hiccup.</p><p>"I'm fine bud...okay...please," Hiccup said calmly, "she's...she's just scared bud, please just calm down."</p><p>"I am not scared," the girl yelled out unconvincingly. Toothless' growl deepened.</p><p>"Not helping," Hiccup yelled back to her sarcastically without turning around. He kept his eyes focused on Toothless.<br/>As the girl quickly stumbled back to her feet, her hood fell from her head. She quickly notched her arrow and shakily took aim causing Toothless to growl once more. Hiccup turned back to the girl. He was taken aback by the bright red hair that partially covered her face. She glared back at him but he could see her sparkling sky blue eyes were full of fear and panic.</p><p>"Wh...what is that," she cried out, "and who are ye; what do ye want?" Hiccup just gazed at her, temporarily at a loss for words. His mind flashed to the image of the girl in his grandfather's sketch. It was almost as if the sketch had been brought to life before his eyes. But that was impossible, wasn't it? It simply couldn't be the same girl, she would be over 300 years old! Could she be related somehow? Could she be a distant relative, or even a direct descendant? He shook himself from his stupor as he came to his senses.</p><p>"Uh...p..please," he gulped, "this...this is my dragon. His...his name is Toothless. Uh he's friendly...mostly. He's, uh, he's just trying to protect me. If...if y...you could just lower your bow, he won't see you as a threat."</p><p>"Did...did you say d...dragon." Merida stuttered. Hiccup nodded. Slowly Merida lowered her bow only slightly, but she kept her arrow notched. Her eyes darted between Hiccup and Toothless.</p><p>"He's...he's yer dragon then," Merida questioned nervously. Hiccup nodded again.</p><p>"Y..yeah," he replied, "I...I'm a dragon rider." Merida gazed at him incredulously as she seemed to process his words. Her father's words echoed through her mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"Mindless devils they were, terrorizing the countryside, stealing livestock, burning down villages. They were like...like Mor'du with wings and fiery breath. No mortal man could tame one let alone ride one!"</p><p>...</p><p>"Ye can ride a dragon," she questioned skeptically.</p><p>"Yes," Hiccup replied, "my people are allies of the dragons, he, he's my friend." She dropped her bow lower but kept it notched as she continued to gaze at him incredulously.</p><p>"A dragon rider," she said skeptically, "Ye look more like a Viking to me." She glared at him suspiciously.</p><p>"Uh...well, actually, uh...I...I am a Viking too," Hiccup replied. Without a word, Merida quickly raised her bow and pointed it at him once again.</p><p>"Okay, just...hold...hold on," Hiccup replied as he threw his hands up and backed away.</p><p>"What are ye doing on my land then Viking," she replied venomously, "and where are the others?"</p><p>"I'm sorry," Hiccup replied questioningly "others?"</p><p>"Aye others," Merida replied, "do they have dragons too?"</p><p>"Th..there are other dragon riders where I come from," Hiccup replied, "but I...I came alone."</p><p>"So yer a spy then," Merida insinuated.</p><p>"A spy," Hiccup questioned, "no I...I..."</p><p>"Yer people are waiting for yer word to come and invade my land," Merida exclaimed.</p><p>"W...what n...no," Hiccup stuttered.</p><p>"Well I certainly hope yer tribe of miscreants won't miss ye," Merida continued, "cause ye won't be reporting back to them any time soon!"</p><p>"Now wait," Hiccup cried, "this...this is all just a...a huge misunderstanding. I...I swear...I'm not a spy, a..and no one is coming to invade your land! Please I...I'm telling you the truth."</p><p>"Why should I believe ye Viking," Merida sneered. Hiccup was at a loss.</p><p>"Okay, look I...I am a Viking," Hiccup replied, "but I'm not a bad Viking, I...I'm a good Viking, I swear!"</p><p>"As far as I'm concerned the only good Viking, is a dead Viking," Merida spat. Toothless began to growl once again. Hiccup glanced at the dragon over his shoulder.</p><p>"You're not helping bud," Hiccup muttered as he waved the dragon away, "back off will ya." Toothless reluctantly backed away but kept his eyes fixed on the girl. Merida's eyes flashed back and forth between the dragon and the Viking, but she held her arrow steady and aimed straight at Hiccup's heart.</p><p>"Alright look," Hiccup gulped, "I...I really don't blame you for feeling that way. I mean there are plenty of pretty terrible Vikings in the world, I know that better than anyone." He kept his hands up. He took a half a step closer as he gazed into her perfect blue eyes. Merida stood her ground as she glared at him from behind her bow.</p><p>"I promise you," Hiccup replied, "I'm not one of them." He dropped to his knees before her, but kept his hands up in surrender. He gazed up at her with his intense green eyes. Merida's breath caught in her throat suddenly as her mind instantly flashed back to the Viking that had knelt before her in her dream. She blushed slightly as she tried to shake the thought from her mind.</p><p>"Do what you must," he said as he gazed up at her, "I...I won't fight back." He dropped his eyes to the ground and waited. Merida lowered her bow slightly and gazed at him curiously for a long moment.</p><p>"Why should I trust ye," she questioned.</p><p>"I...I don't really have an answer," Hiccup replied, "you probably shouldn't, I'm a complete stranger to you."</p><p>"Yer saying I shouldn't trust ye," Merida questioned.</p><p>"No," Hiccup replied, "I mean yes, I...I mean..." Hiccup huffed as he tried to find the words to explain. She continued to glare at him.</p><p>"Nothing I say will convince you that I am trustworthy," Hiccup replied, "my word means nothing to you if...if you don't know me at all."</p><p>Hiccup took a deep breath as he glanced up at her briefly. She kept her arrow aimed at him.</p><p>"You're...you're just going to have to take a leap of faith." She gazed at him for a long moment as she pondered his words. Hiccup remained on his knees before her, silently awaiting his fate.</p><p>"Ye are the worst Viking I've ever met," Merida replied. Hiccup glanced up at her in confusion.</p><p>"I thought ye would of at least put up a little bit of a fight, then I could brag to my brothers how I single handedly killed an evil Viking!" Hiccup shook his head in amusement and confusion.</p><p>"Sorry to disappoint you," he replied in a questioning tone. She slowly un-notched her arrow and replaced it in her quiver as she brushed the mess of red curls away from her face.</p><p>"Stand up ye glaikit Viking," Merida huffed. Hiccup quickly got back on his feet. He stared at her unwittingly, still shocked by the uncanny resemblance between her and the girl in the sketch, and completely taken by her beauty. His heart seemed to be racing as he gazed at her.</p><p>"What," she asked defensively, "what are ye staring at?"</p><p>"I...I'm not...sorry," Hiccup said, quickly averting his eyes, "uh...no, uh I meant I am sorry, I...I didn't mean to...that is, you just look...so...familiar." He grinned at her sheepishly. He could feel his face flush slightly and prayed she didn't notice. She gazed up at him trying to stifle her amusement as he stumbled on his words. She slung her bow over her shoulder and stepped forward.</p><p>"Is that what ye say to all the girls ye scare half to death in the forest," she huffed as she put her hands on her hips. He smirked at her witty comment. She smirked back and rose an eyebrow at him.</p><p>"No," Hiccup replied sarcastically as he crossed his arms over his chest, "usually I don't get the chance to speak before they run away screaming." She looked at him oddly.</p><p>"It was a joke," he replied quickly. She smirked at him again.</p><p>"Well, I guess I should consider myself lucky then," she replied crossing her arms over her chest, "I get to see a side of ye that all the others miss." Hiccup chuckled. She carefully stepped across the shallow creek toward Hiccup and Toothless. She stood close beside him for a moment causing his breath to catch in his throat. She kept her eyes on Toothless.</p><p>"A dragon," she said gazing at Toothless in awe," a real live dragon."</p><p>"You've never seen one," Hiccup asked. She shook her head.</p><p>"Only heard stories," she replied glancing up at Hiccup. Her heart froze when she inadvertently looked into his deep green eyes, she quickly looked away. She couldn't deny the striking similarity between him and the viking from her dream. Hiccup smiled slightly as he noticed the blush on her cheeks.</p><p>"Do you want to meet him," he asked, "I...I mean officially." She nodded as she turned to him again and smiled. He felt his heart flutter for a moment at the lovely sight. Hiccup motioned for her to come with him. Toothless' eyes darted between Hiccup and the girl. As they came closer he lowered his head defensively and started to back away.</p><p>"Easy bud, easy," Hiccup said, "she's a friend now." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye and smiled slightly. Toothless glared at her warily. He was not sure he could trust this human as he trusted Hiccup. As Merida gazed at Toothless she slowly stepped forward. She knelt down carefully and held her hand out allowing Toothless to decide. Toothless continued to glare at her distrustfully. Slowly and cautiously she lifted the bow above her head and lay it gently upon the ground before him.</p><p>"It's okay," she whispered softly, "ye see...it's alright now." She stayed still with eyes averted. Toothless looked up at Hiccup questioningly. Hiccup smiled and nodded in the dragon's direction. Toothless looked back at her. He sighed heavily as he slowly moved forward pressing his muzzle into the palm of her hand causing her to giggle slightly. Hiccup just gazed at her and Toothless in amazement.</p><p>"You're as gentle as a wee lamb aren't ye," she chuckled softly, "we just got off on the wrong foot now didn't we." She turned and noticed Hiccup gazing at her again and she could feel her cheeks flush slightly. He quickly shifted his eyes back to Toothless, as he subconsciously rubbed the back of his neck. She smiled slightly in spite of herself.<br/>She turned back to Toothless. She slowly reached into her bag and pulled out a sweet roll.</p><p>"Here," she said as she placed it on the ground before the dragon, "a peace offering." Toothless sniffed at it warily, and then looked up at Merida curiously.</p><p>"Ye eat it ye silly dragon," she replied pointing to her mouth and opening it wide. Toothless opened his mouth revealing his Toothless gums and then just sat there staring at her.</p><p>"No," she giggled, "look." She pulled another sweet roll out and took a bite.</p><p>"See," she said with her mouth full, "it's food." Toothless sniffed at the pastry once more and slowly put his tongue on it just so. He opened his eyes wide in surprise. He seemed to smile as he quickly gulped the roll down in an instant. He then leaned forward nearly knocking her over as he sniffed at her bag looking for more. Merida laughed heartily.</p><p>"Toothless," Hiccup chuckled, "don't be rude!" Merida just shook her head laughing. She pulled out her last sweet roll and tossed it to the dragon.</p><p>"I'm afraid that's my last one," she said apologetically, "if I had known I'd meet a dragon that liked sweet rolls today, I'd a packed a little more." Toothless pouted a bit.</p><p>"Come on bud," Hiccup chuckled, "at least thank her." He looked to the dragon with a raised eye brow. Toothless thought for a moment then he grabbed an arrow from the ground with his mouth and then scribbled in the dirt before her. Merida just gazed in surprise at a very lopsided looking heart and some random jumbled lines. She smiled up at the dragon in amazement.</p><p>"Yer so sweet," she said, "I never thought in a million years I'd be face to face with a dragon, and such a sweet one at that."</p><p>"Well for never having seen a dragon before, you're amazing," Hiccup replied, "uh...with him...you're amazing with Toothless...that is." He mentally kicked himself.</p><p>"Well," she sighed contentedly, "yer dragon is also amazing. Truth be told, I thought dragons were nothing more than fire breathing demons who terrorized villages and kidnapped princesses," Merida replied. To this Toothless snorted in offense.</p><p>"Sorry," she said apologetically. Hiccup chuckled lightly as he leaned upon Toothless and looked down at Merida.</p><p>"Well that is a rather popular misconception," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Really," Merida replied. She stood up slowly and gazed up at Hiccup.</p><p>"Well the fire-breathing demon thing I can see," Hiccup replied with a shrug.</p><p>Toothless snorted again as Hiccup continued, "and the terrorizing of villages." Toothless huffed and rolled his eyes.</p><p>"But kidnapping princesses," Hiccup said skeptically, "why on earth would a dragon want to kidnap a princess?"</p><p>"Well, all I know," Merida replied, "is every story I've ever heard of a dragon involved the kidnapping of a princess and said princess would be locked away in a tall tower to await a knight in shining armor to slay the beast and rescue her."</p><p>"Hiccup chuckled, "well that's just ridiculous."</p><p>"Aye, tis," Merida replied as she crossed her arms over her chest, "why would the princess wait around for a knight to rescue her, why can't she just save herself?"</p><p>"I couldn't say," Hiccup replied in amusement, "I mean, I've never met a princess before, maybe they like to be rescued by knights in shining armor." He shrugged. Merida rolled her eyes and groaned.</p><p>"Well that's a typical manly response isn't it," Merida said in slight annoyance as she turned to walk away from him, "I suppose yer used to women being weak and helpless where ye come from." To this Hiccup laughed out loud. Merrida turned and glared at him.</p><p>"I'm sorry," Hiccup replied as his laughter subsided, "I'm sorry, but you couldn't be more wrong."</p><p>"What's that supposed to mean," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Where I come from," Hiccup replied as he made his way over to where she stood, "a man is liable to be killed for even thinking of a woman as weak...by said woman."</p><p>"Is that so," Merida replied as she crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at him.</p><p>"Where I come from," Hiccup went on, as he stepped closer to her, "women are warriors, same as men. Just ask my second in command, I'm sure she would gladly regale you with tales of how she's both saved and kicked my butt." Merrida gazed at him in surprise.</p><p>"I don't know much about princesses," Hiccup shrugged as he took another step closer, "but women, in general, are far from weak and helpless." He smirked as he gazed at her. As she gazed back into his deep green eyes, she flashed back to the eyes of the mysterious Viking from her dream. She held her breath for a moment as she tried to shake the vision from her mind. She could feel her face flush slightly once again and it felt as if a thousand butterflies were fluttering in her gut.</p><p>"Is that so," she replied trying her best to seem more confident in this moment then she actually was. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"In my," he paused and cleared his throat as he backed away slightly, "in my personal experience with women,...yes."</p><p>"Oh," she replied in annoyance, "and ye've had many I'm sure." She pushed her way past him and headed back over to where she left her satchel. Her tone confused him for a moment but as her meaning dawned on him he quickly followed after her.</p><p>"Hey...wait," he called out, "that's not what I meant, uh, you misunderstood!"</p><p>"Oh come now, do ye think I'm daft," Merida replied as she collected her things, "you're a typical man," Merida huffed, "ye tell me what I want to hear so that I find ye interesting and then ye look at me with those, those green eyes and ye smile at me with that crooked grin of yer's..."</p><p>"Wait...what," Hiccup stuttered, "my what now?"</p><p>"And then what, I...I'm just another notch in yer belt then," Merida replied. Hiccup could feel his heart race as she spoke and his face grow hot with frustration.</p><p>"Whoah, whoah, whoah, okay, just hold on," Hiccup huffed, "what are you even talking about?"</p><p>"I wasn't born yesterday," Merida continued to rant, "I know better then to...then to...fall for the likes of ye!" She picked up her bow and flung it over her shoulder. Merida was flustered, the feelings that she felt as he stood so close to her she had never felt before and they were startling to her. She inadvertently lashed out to distance herself from the situation and to gain control of her emotions once again.</p><p>"Oh please," he replied in frustration "don't flatter yourself!"</p><p>"What's that supposed to mean," she yelled as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.</p><p>"It means you're paranoid," Hiccup spat, "and whatever it is that you think is going on here, whatever you're accusing me of is all in your head!"</p><p>"Ye think just because I caught on to yer little game that ye can tell me I'm crazy," Merida yelled.</p><p>"No, you wanna know what I think," he huffed, "I think you like me, and you're just making up crazy excuses to not like me...because...because you're afraid to like me!"</p><p>"That's exactly what someone like ye would say, isn't it," Merida scoffed.</p><p>"Someone like me," Hiccup yelled, "someone like me...you don't know anything about me!"</p><p>"I know yer type," Merida huffed, Yer nothin mair then an egotistical, sel righteous, pompous jerk, wha thinks juist fur he's braw that ony lassie he meets wull juist fall a' ower him!" Hiccup furrowed his brow as he tried to decipher what she was saying through her thick accent.</p><p>"Oh,...you know my type," Hiccup replied, "and what's your type, irrational, vain, spoiled, accusatory, drama queen?" Merida glared at him, her face nearly as red as her hair. Hiccup glared right back at her.</p><p>"Ye think just because I won't fall for yer philandering ways, ye can just...insult me," Merida spat.</p><p>"You insulted me first," Hiccup yelled.</p><p>Merida groaned in aggravation.</p><p>"Dragon or no dragon," she huffed, "yer the same as any other!" She huffed again as she quickly turned around and stormed away from him. She suddenly realized that Angus was nowhere to be found.</p><p>"You're crazy ya know that," Hiccup yelled, "In fact that's probably the one thing I definitely know about women. You're all crazy!"</p><p>"Angus...," she called out as she tried desperately to ignore Hiccup, "Angus come here boy.!" Hiccup groaned as he watched her walking away. He couldn't explain it but everything in him was insisting that he not let her go; not like this.</p><p>"Okay, just hold on a minute," Hiccup replied, "this is all a huge, ridiculous misunderstanding." She continued to call for her missing horse and refused to acknowledge him.</p><p>"Look, I...I'm sorry I insulted you," he continued, "but you jumped to the wrong conclusion about me."</p><p>"Ha," she scoffed.</p><p>"Whatever you think of me, it isn't true," he exclaimed, "when I said, what I said, what I meant was, I know women..." Merida turned to him and glared.</p><p>"No, I...I meant, the women that I already know..." She crossed her arms over her chest and continued to glare at him. He sighed heavily in defeat, "is there anyway at all, that I can explain myself without making it sound ten times worse." Merida just stood with arms crossed gazing at him incredulously.</p><p>"Oh I give up," Hiccup huffed as he threw his arms up in exasperation, "I don't need to explain myself to you, just forget it!"</p><p>He turned away from her and sat down on a nearby rock. His back was facing her and he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Just go," he replied in defeat, "I won't stop you, I don't even know your name but whatever...just leave." She smirked at him from behind. She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily.</p><p>"Merida."</p><p>Hiccup turned around to face her with, in her opinion, an adorable look of confusion on his face.</p><p>"My name," she said haughtily, "it's Merida."</p><p>"N..name, oh...oh, y...your name," he grinned as he stood and turned in her direction, "right...right, of course." He crossed his arms over his chest nervously.</p><p>"That's...that's...uh...that's a really pretty name actually." She furrowed her brow at him.</p><p>"I...I mean it's a...a nice name," he cleared his throat, "it's a really n..nice name for uh...a pretty girl. Uh...no, I didn't mean that. Oh uh, I mean, that is, not that you're not pretty, because you are in fact really...pretty...but uh..." He sighed," okay, uh...honestly, uh...how is this going for me; because I'm not gonna lie I kinda feel like it's...it's not going so well." Merida began to laugh in spite of herself. Hiccup smirked at her.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied as he backed away, "I'm just going to go now and I...I guess die of embarrassment."</p><p>"No...no wait," Merida replied amidst her laughter, "I..I'm sorry, uh, maybe we should...start over." She took a deep breath and tried her best to stifle her amusement.</p><p>"Uh...okay," Hiccup replied," uh and just so we're clear, that whole thing about all the women I know, I didn't mean it how it sounded at all. I meant like I know them, not like I know know them, I mean not how you thought I meant. I mean like, well there's uh my mom for one, uh my friends moms, the village elder, and a couple of my friends that are, ya know, just friends, uh and my second in command like I said before." Merida furrowed her brow at him.</p><p>"Uh...okay," he said grinning awkwardly, "I...I'm just gonna go ahead and stop talking now."</p><p>"Okay...so...starting over then," she sighed, "I'm Merida, daughter of King Fergus of clan DunBroch." She flashed him a slight smile as she curtseyed, "and ye are?" He smiled back at her.</p><p>"Okay, uh, wait, did..did you just say daughter of the king," he asked, "does that mean, your a..."</p><p>"Princess," Merida smirked at him, "and ye are...?"</p><p>"Someone who apparently likes to put his foot in his mouth," he groaned.</p><p>"Well that's obvious," she replied, "but I meant yer name."</p><p>"Oh uh...My name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third, I'm chief of Berk, and leader of the Viking clan the Hairy Hooligans," he replied with a bow of his head. Merida gazed up at him in shock and confusion.</p><p>"Wait...what," she shook her head, "that's not possible!" Hiccup looked up at her in confusion.</p><p>"Yer name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock," she questioned.</p><p>"I know...I know it's a mouthful," Hiccup chuckled, "but it's tradition for Vikings to have terrible names...it's..."</p><p>"No, no, I didn't mean that," Merida said, "I meant, I know that name!" Hiccup gazed at her in confusion. She began to frantically rummage through her satchel, she then pulled out a book and opened it. She frantically flipped through its pages until she found what she was looking for.</p><p>"Look," she exclaimed as she pointed to a place on the opened page. Hiccup took the book from her hands and read aloud where she had pointed.</p><p>...</p><p>The Vikings have arrived. I have to say they are much different then I was expecting. The way mum made it seem they would be blood thirsty mercenaries, with bad hygiene and murder in their eyes.'</p><p>...</p><p>"Hey, I think I'm a little offended by that," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Ugh," Merida groaned, "keep reading!"</p><p>...</p><p>They seem to be just like us in many ways. Their chief, Halvar the Terrible...</p><p>...<br/>"Hiccup glanced up at her briefly in intrigue. He continued on...</p><p>...</p><p>reminds me a lot of Dad, and they came together like old friends. The Vikings are boisterous and loud, not unlike most Scotsman. I think even mum was surprised. The chief's son is about my age his name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock. He is a handsome lad, polite and well mannered. He seems very nice. Imagine that, a well mannered Viking!'<br/>...</p><p>Hiccup looked up at her in shock.</p><p>"What is this," he asked, "where did you find this?"</p><p>"It's my great great nana's journal," Merida replied excitedly.</p><p>"Ok wait...let me get this straight, your great great nana," Hiccup said in realization, "knew my great great grandfather...Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the first!"</p><p>"That's not all I found," Merrida smiled in excitement. She pulled the sketch book out as well and handed it over to him.</p><p>"Look," she said as she pointed out the three H's scratched into the books cover. He gazed at it curiously and glanced back up at Merida in surprise. She smiled anxiously. He turned his eyes back to the book as he opened it and began to leaf through its pages.</p><p>"This is amazing," Hiccup exclaimed," these drawings, they're re all of Berk. This...this is my home, and dragons, and..." He paused when he found the picture of merida's great great grandmother sitting by the bluffs.</p><p>"This is her isn't it," Hiccup questioned. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Queen Mairead of DunBroch," she replied proudly, "my great great nana, my namesake."</p><p>"I knew it," he chuckled aloud, "you...you looked so much like her, I...I thought I was crazy, but the moment I saw you I knew it!"</p><p>"Knew what exactly," Merida questioned, "how do you know what she looks like?" Without a word Hiccup turned back towards Toothless. He then flipped open the bag attached to Toothless' saddle. and pulled out a book of his own. He flipped through the pages quickly until he found what he was looking for. He then turned the book around so she could see it. There on the page was a sketch of her great great grandmother smiling and around her neck she wore the pendent that now belonged to Merida. She looked up at Hiccup in surprise.</p><p>"You see," Hiccup went on, "the resemblance, it's...it's...uncanny." Merida gazed at the image in intrigue.</p><p>"And...and this pendent" he quickly pulled the pendent from beneath his shirt, "It belonged to my great great grandfather," he said.</p><p>"It's the same as the one she's wearing!" Merida gazed at the identical pendent that Hiccup held up before her. She shook her head in disbelief. Hiccup pointed out the symbol.</p><p>"The symbol here," he went on, "it's a Viking rune that means love, and on the other side is another symbol that I don't really know but I..."</p><p>"Soul mates," Merrida said out loud. Hiccup looked up to her wide-eyed.</p><p>"It's a Celtic knot," Merrida said as she pulled her own necklace from beneath her cloak, "it means soul mates." Hiccup stared at her in disbelief. As Merida did the same.</p><p>"You have one too," he replied in amazement. She nodded.</p><p>"Okay this may sound a little crazy," Hiccup replied, "but I think that maybe my great great grandfather was in love with your great great nana, uh when they were younger I mean."</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "she said as much in her journal."</p><p>"May I...may I take a look at your pendent," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"Sure," she replied as she lifted it from her neck. She gently placed the pendent in his hand.</p><p>The moment their fingers touched both were struck by a wave of sudden nervousness. Hiccup's mind flashed briefly once again to the moment the woman in his dream pressed the pendent into his hand. Their eyes met for a moment and each could see the others face flushed. For a second that felt like an hour. The two stayed as they were, hand in hand gazing into the others eyes. Realizing their awkward position, Hiccup was the first to break contact.</p><p>"Uh...thanks," he said as he pulled his hand from her's. He sat back down upon the nearby rock and turned his attention to the pendent, trying desperately to pretend the awkward moment between them hadn't happened at all. She watched him with the pendent in curiosity.</p><p>"What are ye looking for exactly," she questioned.</p><p>"I want to see if your's is anything like mine," Hiccup glanced up at her briefly before turning his eyes back to the pendent.</p><p>"Merida sat beside him on the rock and leaned closer to him to get a better view. Her head nearly resting on his shoulder as she watched. Hiccup's heart fluttered slightly at their closeness but he tried his best to ignore it.</p><p>Before her eyes, Hiccup carefully opened the pendent just as she had figured out a few days before. Inside this one Hiccup found the tiny lock of braided hair that was a dark mahogany brown, almost identical to his own hair. He turned and gazed in Merida's direction in amazement.</p><p>"Did...did ye say yer's does the same," Merida asked curiously. Hiccup clasped the pendent lid shut and turned to her.</p><p>"May I," he questioned as he held up the necklace. She turned and allowed him to drape the chain around her neck and clasp it behind her. She felt goosebumps whenever his fingers accidentally brushed against the skin of her neck. When he finished she turned back to him trying desperately to avoid his eyes. She watched as he then took his own pendent and opened it the same way, but hidden inside his locket was a lock of fiery red hair, identical to her's.</p><p>"This is crazy," Merida stood from her place and began to pace in front of him, "I...I can't believe this, I...I mean what are the chances!"</p><p>"That's how I felt too," Hiccup chuckled, "see, my great great grandfather was a blacksmith and an inventor. He designed the pendants himself; I...I thought mine was the only one, but he must have made a matching set."</p><p>"So they could each have one," Merida replied, "so each could carry a piece of the other with them wherever they were."</p><p>"No matter how far apart," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"I must admit," Merida sighed, "it seems yer great great grandfather was quite the romantic, he must have loved her deeply." Hiccup blushed slightly at her words as he nodded in agreement.</p><p>"This all is practically unbelievable," Merida said, "I mean, our great great grandparents were in love, and...and what are the chances that practically 300 years later, ye and I, of all people, would find each other in the middle of the woods, wearing the very pendents that were basically a token of their love for each other." Hiccup gazed at her curiously as he pondered her words.</p><p>"Well, maybe...maybe it's not chance," Hiccup replied. He stood suddenly and approached her. Without thinking he took hold of both her hands in his.</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup said, "I...I think you're the one, I mean the one I'm meant to find..." She gazed up at him in surprise and slight confusion and her face flushed light pink. Realizing what he'd said and done, he gulped. He became aware in that moment he was still holding her hands. He quickly pulled his hands away and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.</p><p>"Uh...I mean, I..I..that is, I meant," Hiccup stuttered on his words, "the..the one to help me find the truth a...about my great great grandfather." He smiled sheepishly as a slight blush crept over his cheeks. She smiled in amusement and tried her best to stifle a giggle.</p><p>"Well," he sighed, feeling completely mortified as she giggled slightly, "there goes the last of my confidence."</p><p>"I'm sorry," she giggled, "I can't help it...yer just...yer adorable when yer nervous." His heart fluttered at her words.</p><p>"You...you think I'm adorable," he replied with a grin. She nodded as she chuckled.</p><p>"Aye," she replied with a smile, "ye are."</p><p>"Hey uh," Hiccup smiled feeling his confidence swell, "did..uh..did you maybe wanna join Toothless and I for dinner? I mean, nothing special, obviously. Probably just, ya know, fish over a campfire. Uh...and, and maybe we could talk more about the grandparents, compare notes and, I don't know, maybe get to know each other a little better."</p><p>"I...I'd love that," she said.</p><p>"Yeah," he said in a surprised tone.</p><p>"Yeah," she nodded, but her smile suddenly fell when his words sunk in to her brain.</p><p>"Dinner...oh no," she exclaimed. Hiccup furrowed his brow as he gazed at her in confusion.</p><p>"I...I'm late...again," she cried out, "I'm sorry, but my mum...she'll have my head for sure if I don't get home before dark, I...I have to go, I'm sorry." She frantically began to collect her things.</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup called out.</p><p>"Oh, and Angus ran off after Toothless spooked him," she remembered aloud, "Oh, I'll never make it home before dark without Angus!"</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup called out again, "you know Toothless and I could give you a ride home, it"s...it's no problem."</p><p>"That's really kind of ye Hiccup," she replied, "but I don't think the guards will take too kindly to a dragon or a Viking for that matter. It's probably best ye stay out of sight for now."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied, as he stepped closer to her, "how about we don't fly then. We'll stay grounded, which is still faster for Toothless than for you on foot. Then we will drop you off just before the clearing so we stay hidden." Merida smiled slightly.</p><p>"Come on," he urged, "it's the least we can do and, be honest, you know you really want to ride on a dragon." She smirked at him.</p><p>"Shameless," she replied with the shake of her head, "using that innocent dragon to get a girl to like ye." He grabbed his chest in mock offense.</p><p>"I would never," he said in a shocked tone. Merida giggled as Toothless nodded behind Hiccup.</p><p>"Yer dragon says otherwise," she smirked as she crossed her arms over her chest.<br/>"Bud," Hiccup turned to the dragon in defeat, "we're supposed to stick together, you're supposed to be my wingman, come on!" He turned back to Merida and grinned.</p><p>"Okay," I'm going to be honest," Hiccup said, "please don't get mad, I just, I want to make sure you get home safe." She opened her mouth to protest, but he interrupted before she could.</p><p>"I know you are probably perfectly capable of taking care of yourself," Hiccup went on, "but it is kinda my fault that your horse ran off on you, so maybe, just this once, you could allow me to be just a little bit chivalrous and give you a ride." Merida smiled slightly as she pondered his words.</p><p>"Plus, uh, I don't know if you've noticed, but I...I kinda like you," he took a few steps closer to her as he spoke, "and it just wouldn't be right for me to send off the girl I just met but kinda like, out into the dark woods alone at night." Merida smirked at him once more.</p><p>"And also, you mentioned that your mom would have your head if you were late again. Which, I think, would probably hinder my chances of getting to know you better. So you see it's all really selfish reasons that I am absolutely obligated to give you a ride...and absolutely NOT because I think you're weak in any way." She raised an eye brow at him as she crossed her arms over her chest once more. She bit her bottom lip in an attempt to hinder a smile.</p><p>"Too much," he grinned, "did I sound like I was rambling?"</p><p>"Just a little," she replied holding up her finger and thumb for effect. He grinned at her as he nodded his head.</p><p>"Yeah I uh, I tend to do that sometimes," he replied with a shrug of his shoulders, "ya know, mostly when I'm nervous, which, by the way, you think is adorable. Just throwing that out there." He raised an eyebrow at her. She couldn't contain the laugh that escaped her lips.</p><p>"Oh alright," she sighed. Hiccup smiled at her triumphantly.</p><p>"Come on Toothless," he called out as he continued to smile at her, "we gotta get this princess home." Toothless lay down sternal upon the ground to allow his rider on. Hiccup clicked his metal foot in place and then turned and held his hand out to Merida. She took it and allowed him to pull her up into the saddle behind him. He felt her put her hands upon his shoulders lightly. He chuckled as he glanced back at her.</p><p>"What," she questioned.</p><p>"Nothing," he replied, "just, if you want to get home before dark...you might want to hold on a little tighter than that." Merida scoffed.</p><p>"I can stay on Angus at full gallop not holding on to anything while hitting every target dead on. I think I'll be able to stay on a dragon."</p><p>"Suit yourself," Hiccup shrugged, "alright bud, let's go."</p><p>Toothless took off like a shot through the forest, running much faster then any horse could gallop. Merida let out a yelp as she quickly wrapped her arms tightly around Hiccup's waist pulling herself as close to him as possible, her head pressed up against his back as she hid her face from the whipping wind. Hiccup smiled when he felt her cling to him suddenly. The feel of her pressed up against him made his heart race furiously and he could feel his face flush.</p><p>"You okay back there," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"Just peachy," Merrida replied. Hiccup grinned at her response. He glanced back in her direction briefly. She was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, he couldn't help but to think that being wrapped in her arms was something that he could definitely get used to. He took a deep breath and tried to shake the thought from his mind. This was a girl he'd just met only hours ago, after all. He shouldn't be thinking about her in such a way. Besides this wasn't what he came here for, and there were much more pressing issues at hand. He couldn't allow himself to be distracted.</p><p>Before long they had arrived at the edge of the forest just as dusk began to settle over DunBroch. Hiccup unhooked his foot and leapt down from Toothless. He held his hand up to help Merida down. She took his hand and slid down the dragon's side. Just as her feet touched the ground, Toothless purposely leaned into her, causing her to loose her footing and stumble right into Hiccup's arms.</p><p>"Whoa," Hiccup chuckled as he caught her, "you okay?"</p><p>"Mmm hmm," She nodded as she gazed up at him. Hiccup just gazed back at her with those deep green eyes that reminded her so much of the Viking in her dream. His arms were wrapped around her waist and her hands were gripped onto his shoulders. For a moment the two stood holding on to each other and gazing into the others eyes. Their faces were only a few inches apart. They were so close that Hiccup could feel the warmth of her breath on his face. He could not explain the pull he felt toward her since the moment they met, and all he could think of in this moment was how much he longed to make those measly few inches disappear. And all he wanted to do was pull her to him and feel the softness of her lips pressed to his. Toothless watched them anxiously.</p><p>"Uh...okay," Hiccup said softly as he suddenly came to his senses. He let her go as he backed away, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. She quickly dropped her arms as well and they both tried desperately to pretend that the awkward moment between them hadn't happened. Toothless rolled his eyes as he huffed and turned away.</p><p>"Well, here we are," Hiccup said, "home before dark, as promised."</p><p>"Thank you, " Merida said politely. He nodded in her direction.</p><p>"No problem," Hiccup replied, "happy to do it." Both of them stood awkwardly as they tried to part ways, but for some reason both seemed to be finding it nearly impossible to do so.</p><p>"Umm...okay," Merida smiled, "I better um...I better go then."</p><p>"Yeah, yeah," Hiccup replied as he took a half a step back. She reluctantly turned and began to walk away.</p><p>"It was, uh, really nice to meet you," Hiccup called out. She glanced back at him and smiled.</p><p>"Ye too," she replied. She turned and continued to walk away. Hiccup reluctantly did the same. He was about to get on Toothless when the dragon turned to him and growled. Hiccup looked up at Toothless and noticed the curious look on the dragon's face. Toothless whined again and then nodded in Merida's direction. Hiccup quirked an eyebrow at the dragon. Toothless growled again and nodded toward Merida more insistently. Getting the message, Hiccup paused and turned back to Merida.</p><p>"Uh...hey Merida...wait," he called out</p><p>"Aye," she said as she quickly turned back to face him. Hiccup jogged over to her and smiled nervously.</p><p>"Will I...uh...I mean, can we," he stuttered nervously, "uh...can we um..see each other again?" Merida giggled slightly as she nodded.</p><p>"Of course," she smiled, "we have to figure out the mystery of our great great grandparents don't we?" She raised an eyebrow at him causing him to chuckle slightly.</p><p>"Yeah...yes," Hiccup smiled awkwardly, " of...of course...right...that is...that's exactly what I meant."</p><p>"She chuckled again, "tomorrow then, same place we met, bright and early."</p><p>"Tomorrow yes," Hiccup replied with a grin, "I will most definitely be there."</p><p>"Thanks again," she smiled.</p><p>"For what," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"For rescuing me," she laughed, "if it weren't for ye and that dragon o' yers, I'd a lost my head when I got home." Hiccup chuckled lightly.</p><p>"See," he shrugged, "it's not so bad after all is it princess?"</p><p>"What's that," Merida questioned in amusement.</p><p>"Being rescued by a knight in shining armor," he replied.</p><p>"Well...I couldn't say," Merida replied with a smile, "I've never met a knight before, but being rescued by a Viking in dragon's armor, that I could get used to."</p><p>Before she could even stop to think about her actions, Merida leaned forward quickly and kissed him on the cheek, causing his already furiously beating heart to nearly burst from his chest. She smiled as she backed away.</p><p>"And just so ye know," she grinned, "I kinda like ye too Hiccup." She smiled as she quickly turned and ran out of the woods. Hiccup all but fell over as he watched her leave. He couldn't help but to think, this could be the start of a very interesting journey. Toothless gazed at his rider in amusement.</p><p>"I think I may be in trouble Bud," he said as he tore his eyes away from where she had been, "deep trouble." Toothless suddenly nudged Hiccup nearly knocking him to the ground. Hiccup turned to the dragon in annoyance only to see a sly expression on his face. Toothless raised his eyebrows suggestively.</p><p>"That was you," Hiccup chuckled. Toothless nodded proudly.</p><p>"You sneaky little lizard," he grinned, " I cant believe you did that." He sighed as he glanced once more in the direction Merida had gone.</p><p>"I definitely owe you one bud," he said as he hopped up on the dragon's back once more. The two turned in the opposite direction.</p><p>"Come on Toothless," he said as he patted the dragon's neck affectionately, "let's go eat."</p><p>...</p><p>Merida</p><p>...</p><p>"Merida," Elinor exclaimed as she entered the castle, "thank God yer safe...I was worried sick!"</p><p>"Mum," Merida whined, "I'm on time...what were ye worried about?"</p><p>"There was another dragon sighting," Elinor exclaimed, "normally I wouldn't put much thought to such crazy tales, but when Angus came back without ye I thought the worst. I was about to send the troops after ye! And just look at ye, yer dress, it's filthy! What on earth happened?"</p><p>"Mum," Merrida groaned in exasperation, "I'm fine, Angus got spooked and threw me, it's no big deal." Elinor merely sighed in relief.</p><p>"Well," Elinor replied, "maybe I should have your father send the troops out to investigate this dragon sighting anyway."</p><p>"No mum," Merrida cried out suddenly. Elinor turned to her daughter and gazed at her curiously.</p><p>"Uh...I mean a dragon mum, really," Merrida scoffed "ye don't actually believe there is some lone dragon stalking the highlands do ye now, I mean where even was this dragon sighting?"</p><p>"Lord Dingwall said he saw it gliding about near the Fire Falls."</p><p>"Well...I was just at the Fire Falls today," Merida lied, " and I didn't see any sign of a dragon."</p><p>"Maybe yer right," Elinor replied, "Lord Dingwall was a bit tipsy when he brought it up." Merrida crossed her arms and raised an eye brow at her mother.</p><p>"Go on then," Elinor replied, "clean up for dinner, I won't have ye looking a shambles when we have guests."</p><p>"Ugh...mum, do ye mind if I just skip dinner tonight," Merida pleaded.</p><p>"Are ye feeling alright dear," her mother asked in concern as she reached up to feel her daughter's forehead.</p><p>"Aye Mum," Merida replied, "I'm just tired from walking home is all."</p><p>"Aye dear," Elinor replied, " go up to bed then...see ye in the morn."</p><p>"Night mum," Merida yawned as she headed up the stairs.</p><p>When she reached her room, she flopped down on her bed and gazed up at the canopy. She smiled as she thought about the events of her day. Absentmindedly, she reached up and began to fiddle with the pendent that hung around her neck as her mind drifted to the Viking boy she had just met. Despite their brief misunderstanding, he was unlike any boy she'd ever met. He was funny, interesting, positively adorable and she found herself looking forward to seeing him again.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup decided to set up camp in the place where he and Merida had met. He sat by the fire reading through his grandfather's journal. He paused at the sketch of the girl.</p><p>"Mairead," he muttered to himself as he traced the image with his finger. Finally he had a name for the face of the mysterious woman. His mind inadvertently drifted to Merida, the namesake and direct descendant of his great great grandfather's true love. He smiled to himself. The similarity between Merida and Mairead was striking, but, in his opinion, Merida's beauty far outweighed that of her predecessor. In fact she was easily the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, not to mention fearless. He smirked slightly as he thought of the petite girl standing her ground against a Viking and a dragon. She was positively impressive to say the least.</p><p>As he thought of her, his mind inadvertently drifted back to their brief moment of closeness by the edge of the woods, when she had stumbled into his arms. Though the moment was brief, it was intense. He blushed slightly as he recalled the strong and unexplainable urge to kiss her in that moment. He wondered if she had felt it too. Perhaps, he wondered, it was the reason she had unexpectedly kissed him on the cheek. He sighed as he closed the journal and headed over to the now sleeping Toothless. Hiccup sat down beside the dragon and lay back against the dragon's side. He crossed his arms behind his head and gazed up at the forest canopy. He only caught a few glimpses here and there of the stars above as the wind rustled the tree tops. He sighed once more at the thought of the princess, and he found himself looking forward to seeing her again.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. The Start of Something</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 10</p><p>Merida</p><p>...</p><p>Merida was up much earlier then normal, she wanted to bring extra food and supplies with her for Hiccup and Toothless and the last thing she wanted was for her mother to become suspicious. She knew if her mother ever found out that she was going to meet a Viking in the woods, she would likely lock her away in a tower room and bar her from ever leaving the castle again.</p><p>Merida chuckled to herself as she thought of it. In all those fairytale stories the princess was locked away and guarded by a dragon awaiting a knight's rescue. If she were locked away by her mother then a viking and a dragon could easily fly to her rescue. Not that she needed rescuing of course, but the analogy still amused her.</p><p>Her mother was a benevolent person for the most part, but she had a deep distrust and near hatred for Vikings. From what she understood, her mother's village was raided by Vikings once when she was just a wee lass. Elinor had seen the violence and devastation of a Viking raid first hand and nothing it seemed could sway her opinion of them. Not even great great nana's journal which described vikings very different than those which she described herself.</p><p>Merida couldn't blame her mother for feeling as she did, nor could she blame her for teaching her only daughter to fear them. Perhaps the majority of Vikings were as her mother described, for certain the ones that invaded her home were. But Hiccup was far different than any description of a Viking Merida had ever been told about. And judging by the fact that he hailed from Berk, the very people that were once Dunbroch's close allies, she could only assume that the Berkans simply were not like other Vikings. She was sure if they were that Mairead would never have fallen in love with Hiccup's great great grandfather to begin with.</p><p>Merida's mind drifted to her first encounter with Hiccup as she held him in the crosshairs of her bow and after she had basically and regrettably told him all Vikings were better off dead.</p><p>...</p><p>"Look, I don't blame you for feeling that way," Hiccup replied calmly, "there are plenty of terrible Vikings in the world, I know that better than anyone." He kept his hands up. He took a half a step closer as he gazed into her perfect blue eyes. Merida stood her ground.</p><p>"I promise you," Hiccup replied, "I'm not one of them." He dropped to his knees before her, but kept his hands up in surrender. He gazed up at her with his intense green eyes.</p><p>"Do what you must," he said as he gazed up at her, "I won't fight back." He dropped his eyes to the ground.</p><p>...</p><p>Merida couldn't explain the feelings that ran through her at the sight of the young Viking kneeling before her. They were conflicting to say the least. Here was the type of man her mother had always cautioned her about. He was the very reason she had never been allowed out of the castle walls after dark, and yet he knelt before her in surrender, gazing up at her with the greenest eyes she'd ever seen and sincerely pleading for her to see him as something other than what he was.</p><p>She'd always been taught Vikings were crazy marauders who had little care for human life other then their own. They were greedy, ruthless, and bloodthirsty and would kill anyone that stood in their way. But Hiccup had turned every pre-conceived notion she'd ever had of Vikings on its head. She initially distrusted him, he could have easily been lying to her, he could have just been telling her whatever he could to save his own hide. But his sincerity was so genuine and she could see in his eyes that he was telling the truth.</p><p>He had asked her to take a leap of faith, to trust him though she knew she shouldn't. She could not explain why she had so easily done so nor why she had so easily looked past what he was. It seemed something inside her just knew he was a good person and that she need not fear him.</p><p>But even more confusing to her were the inexplainable feelings that seemed to flood her heart when they met. She could not explain the way her heart fluttered so when he gazed at her nor why she blushed at the touch of his hand. She could not explain why his intense green eyes caused her breath to hitch.</p><p>Her mind flashed briefly to the moment he'd caught her after she stumbled while dismounting Toothless. He held her tight in his arms and gazed at her with those eyes causing her breath to catch in her throat. His eyes were intoxicating and she just wanted to gaze into them as long as possible. She didn't know whether she should look away to avoid his gaze or if she should just allow herself to get lost in his intense eyes and let come whatever may. They stood so close that if he'd wanted too he could have kissed her and for a moment she thought he might. In that split second of closeness, a thousand jumbled thoughts were running through her mind. If he kissed her should she comply? Did she want him to kiss her? Did it make sense if she wanted to kiss a man she just met and barely knew, let alone a Viking? The most pressing question of all was whether or not she had lost her mind. What could she be thinking allowing herself to feel such things for a man she'd only known for barely a day. The only logical explanation was that it was simply infatuation, brought on by her recent reading of her great great nana's journal, and the strange dreams that had been plaguing her mind.</p><p>Despite her conclusion, Merida couldn't deny the strong connection between them. It was undeniable, quite unexplainable and unlike anything she had ever felt before. She liked him, that much was true, and he'd said he liked her as well; and it just felt so easy, genuine and natural to be around him. It was as if they'd been old friends and had known each other for years and had just been reacquainted.</p><p>But above all of this, her mother's voice remained, giving warning of the consequences of putting one's trust where there is none. In her mother's eyes, the most despicable and untrustworthy among men were Vikings. Convincing her otherwise about this particular viking would be difficult. Merida sighed heavily as she tried to push these confusing and very conflicting thoughts to the back of her mind.</p><p>Instead she focused on the task at hand. Her plan was to take the bag of food to the stable and hide it there until she could get away from the castle. Then she only need suffer through breakfast and then be free to head back to the woods. So at the crack of dawn she headed to the stables with her bag of supplies and hid it under the straw in Angus' stall. She knew nobody would look there, as Angus had little trust for others besides her.</p><p>After she had hidden the bag she gently pet Angus on the nose.</p><p>"I'll see ye in a little while Angus," she cooed. The horse snorted and nuzzled her affectionately. Merida giggled. She then exited the stable and headed back to the castle.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup found himself standing outside the edge of the standing stones, unsure of exactly how he had gotten there. He could just barely hear the faint sound of whispering echoing from somewhere in the center of the circle of ancient stones. In curiosity he stepped forth slowly remaining just outside the parameter of the circle. He peered just past the stones remaining hidden from whoever or whatever might be lurking there.</p><p>He could see a man in a cloak crouched down by one of the sacred stones, chiseling away at it with some sort of dagger and chanting to himself in what sounded to Hiccup like old Norse but he couldn't quite make out the words. Hiccup slowly walked along the outside edge of the stones. His view was temporarily blocked as he passed one of the ancient stones.</p><p>When the strange man was back in his view again the scene had changed. Now he saw him standing in front of the stone with the dagger in his hand. Slowly he turned the blade of the dagger to himself. At first it seemed to Hiccup that the man might slash his own throat but instead he reached the blade to a braid of hair by his ear and cut it off. The man turned to another figure which seemed to materialize out of thin air. The petite figure stood about a foot shorter than the man and stood with their back facing Hiccup. The figure reached up to the hood of their cloak and slowly lowered it revealing a tangled mess of bright red curls. Hiccup watched curiously as the man turned his blade to the woman and gently cut a lock of her hair away.</p><p>Hiccup's view was once again obstructed by another stone as he walked the parameter of the standing stones. As the two people came into view once more, Hiccup watched curiously as the man draped a necklace around the woman's neck. The man then bent forward, as the woman did the same for him. Hiccup watched curiously as he continued to walk. In his next glimpse he saw the man and woman kneeling before each other in front of the stone, their hands clasped and foreheads pressed together in what seemed an intimate exchange. He suddenly felt as if someone were pulling at him from behind. He tried to resist as he struggled to remain in his place watching the two mysterious people.</p><p>"Not now, " he muttered. But he continued to be pulled away against his will.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup opened his eyes to see Toothless standing over him. The dragon was anxiously trying to wake him from his deep sleep by pulling at his shirt and nudging his shoulder. Hiccup groaned as he reached up and rubbed his eyes. Toothless snorted at him impatiently.</p><p>"Alright," Hiccup groaned as he pushed the dragon away, "I'm up, I'm up." Hiccup huffed as he sat up groggily.</p><p>He leaned forward and grasped the bridge of his nose as he yawned. He groggily thought of the details of the strange dream. It was the first time in days that he hadn't had the recurring dream of the mysterious woman and he wondered the significance. He didn't know if this new dream was somehow influenced by his and Merida's meeting the day before, or if it was yet another instance of the spirits of the past reaching out to him. but he guessed it might be a little of both. Toothless nudged him again distracting him from his thoughts.</p><p>"Alright bud," he groaned, "could ya let me wake up a bit." He stood up yawning and stretched his arms over his head.</p><p>As the sleep faded from his mind and he became more awake, his mind slowly drifted away from this unusual new dream and the details of it became a bit hazy. He headed over to the edge of the stream.</p><p>Hiccup knelt down by the stream as he splashed the cool water on his face. He reached for a cloth in his bag and began to dry his face when he was impatiently nudged by Toothless once again.</p><p>"I know...I know bud," Hiccup chuckled. He stood and hung his towel on a nearby tree beside the armor he had taken off the night before. He now wore simple leather trousers, a loose fitting green colored tunic with his leather arm gauntlets. Toothless padded over to Hiccup and nudged him impatiently.</p><p>"Come on bud," Hiccup chuckled, "we're just waiting for Merida, okay, I promise I'll try to take you flying later and who knows maybe I can convince Merida to go flying with us." Toothless whined in annoyance.</p><p>"Hey, I thought you liked Merida," Hiccup chuckled, "I mean what's not to like right." He smirked up at Toothless. Briefly his mind drifted back to the moment she had kissed his cheek the night before. Absentmindedly he touched his hand to his cheek. He could nearly feel the tingling sensation where her soft lips had touched his skin and he blushed at the thought.</p><p>"I'm telling you Bud," Hiccup sighed, "there is just something about this girl, I can't put my finger on it." Toothless cooed and batted his eyes at Hiccup mockingly.</p><p>"Alright, alright," Hiccup chuckled, "are you done?" Toothless smirked in response as he nudged Hiccup playfully.</p><p>"Hey...here's an idea," Hiccup chuckled as he pushed Toothless back, "I'll wait here for Merida and you can go scrounge us up some fish for breakfast." Toothless leaned forward pushing Hiccup and causing him to fall to the ground.</p><p>"Alright, alright bud," Hiccup laughed. He tried to push Toothless away as the dragon batted at him playfully with his front feet.</p><p>"Oh, you want some of this do ya big guy," Hiccup huffed as he playfully wrestled with the dragon. Toothless leaned forward and licked Hiccup's face.</p><p>"Awe come on bud," Hiccup groaned, "I just washed my face!"</p><p>"Alright boys, break it up then if ye want some breakfast!"</p><p>Hiccup's heart froze for a moment at the sound of Merida's voice. He and Toothless turned to her simultaneously. Toothless jumped up and padded over to the princess happily. Hiccup sat up and quickly wiped the drool from his face. He got to his feet, brushed himself off and walked over in her direction.</p><p>He smiled as he crossed his arms over his chest. He watched as Merida greeted Toothless by rubbing the dragon under the chin. He found it amusing how quickly the dragon had taken to her given the circumstances of their first meeting; but then Toothless had always been a great judge of character. Toothless insistently nudged at the princess bag causing her to laugh. The sound of her laughter and the sight of her bright smile caused Hiccup's heart to flutter.</p><p>"Alright ye impatient dragon," she laughed. She reached into the bag and pulled out two sweet rolls and tossed them to Toothless. He happily gobbled them up.</p><p>"Good morning princess," Hiccup said with a slight bow of his head. Merida chuckled slightly as she dismounted Angus.</p><p>"My, so formal," she replied with a grin, "for someone who tried to kill me yesterday." She continued to tie up Angus and loose the straps on his saddle.</p><p>"Excuse me...if anyone tried to kill anyone yesterday," Hiccup replied in amusement, "that would be you my lady."</p><p>"Aye," Merida smirked," after yer dragon tried to kill me first."</p><p>"Really," Hiccup chuckled, "let's not forget that t'was you my lady who fired the first shot." She turned to him with a smirk as she tossed him the bag she had loosed from Angus' saddle. He caught it with one hand.</p><p>"That was just a warning shot," Merida scoffed crossing her arms over her chest, "if I had tried to kill ye, ye'd be dead." He raised his eyebrow at her comment.</p><p>"Point taken," he replied with a shrug.</p><p>He opened the bag she had tossed to him and found it full of a variety of foods, bread, smoked meats, dried fish, more sweet rolls, and a variety of fruits and vegetables.</p><p>His eyes lit up at the sight as he turned his gaze back to her.</p><p>"I didn't know what ye and Toothless liked," she replied with a shrug, "so I just packed some of everything."</p><p>"This is amazing," he replied with a wide grin as he eyed the delicious contents of the bag, "this is so much food..I love you!" The instant the words inadvertently left his lips his eyes went wide as he looked back at her with a mortified expression on his face.</p><p>"Uh I...I uh, I love...the fact that you brought us all this food, is what I meant." He cleared his throat. She smirked at him in amusement.</p><p>"Huh...I guess what they say is true then," Merida replied with a shrug.</p><p>"What's that," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"The way to a man's heart is through his stomach," she replied with a smirk as she patted him on the gut.</p><p>He raised and eye brow at her in surprise of her boldness.</p><p>"Why Princess," he said in mock surprise, "do you mean you're trying to win my heart?" He raised an eyebrow at her and grinned.</p><p>Merida smirked at him and rolled her eyes as she took a few steps closer to him.</p><p>"Ye wish," she replied in amusement, "by the way, ye still have a bit of drool on yer face...just there," she pointed.</p><p>"Toothless," he groaned as he frantically rubbed his now reddened face clean. Merida couldn't help but to laugh.</p><p>He reached into the bag and excitedly pulled out a shiny red apple. He bit into the sweet fruit wth a look of euphoria on his face.</p><p>"This is so good," he said with a full mouth.</p><p>She gazed at him in amusement. He looked back at her and smiled as he swallowed the bit of apple and wiped the juice from his chin with his sleeve.</p><p>"What," he questioned.</p><p>"Just surprised the first thing ye went for was an apple," she shrugged.</p><p>"Well, practically all we eat on Berk is meat, fish and potatoes...maybe carrots if we're lucky...wild berries if we're really lucky," He replied as he took another bite, " where I come from, fresh fruit is pretty scarce."</p><p>"Ye don't grow any on Berk," she questioned. Hiccup shook his head.</p><p>"Too cold," Hiccup replied, "not much could survive the climate." He grinned at her again.</p><p>"So you can go ahead and put apples right at the top of that list then," he smirked.</p><p>"List," she questioned, "what list?"</p><p>"You know," he said as he raised an eyebrow at her, "the list of foods you're gonna win my heart with." Merida groaned in annoyance and rolled her eyes. Hiccup chuckled at her response.</p><p>"Feeling a bit confident today are we," she replied with a smirk. He grinned at her proudly as he bit into a second apple.</p><p>"Well you know," he replied, "I've heard that rescuing damsels in distress is a pretty big confidence builder."</p><p>"Oh please," Merida replied, "I was not in distress, in fact far from it."</p><p>"Hmmm, I seem to recall things just a little bit differently," he said sarcastically.</p><p>"Really," Merida replied, "because I seem to recall ye practically begging me to take a ride on yer dragon." He stepped closer to her taking another bite of his apple as she glared up at him.</p><p>"Well I seem to recall a certain damsel thanking me for rescuing her and telling me she liked me...before laying one on me right here," he said pointing to his cheek.</p><p>"Well... I'm beginning to rethink that statement," she grumbled. She blushed slightly as she glared up at him. Hiccup chuckled lightly.</p><p>"Ya know princess," he smiled as he leaned closer to her, "you are awfully cute when you're flustered." He took another bite of his apple and grinned at her mischievously. Merida groaned in frustration, but her heart was beating frantically.</p><p>"Hiccup ye are...ye are just," Merida replied as she struggled to get her thoughts straight, "ye are the most infuriating man I've ever met!"</p><p>"Maybe," Hiccup smirked, as he leaned closer to her, "but you still like me." Her blush deepened slightly as she huffed and stormed away.</p><p>"No I don't," she yelled back.</p><p>"Yeah ya do," Hiccup called back. He grinned as he turned and noticed Toothless giving him an unimpressed glare.</p><p>"What," he shrugged," she does." Toothless groaned and rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Hey how'd it go last night anyway," Hiccup questioned as he followed after her, "with your mom I mean." She rolled her eyes. She set down on a log nearby with her back facing him. She crossed her arms over her chest and ignored his question.</p><p>"Come on," Hiccup replied, "don't be mad I was just teasing you."</p><p>"Fine," she replied shortly as she turned to face him, "besides the fact that she practically sent out a search party for me when Angus came back alone...it was fine."</p><p>"I'm sure she was just worried," Hiccup replied as he sat beside her on the log.</p><p>"Aye," she was, "especially after Lord Dingwall said he saw a dragon flying about by the Fire Falls," Merida replied with a look of concern on her face.</p><p>"We were seen," Hiccup replied.</p><p>Merida nodded, "and it's not the first time either," she replied, "just a few weeks back Lord Dingwall reported seeing a dragon flying around his lands, a dragon with a rider. Was that ye as well?"</p><p>"Most likely," Hiccup replied, "I was scouting around here a few weeks back." She looked up at him in concern.</p><p>"Hiccup, ye need to be more careful with Toothless," Merida said in concern. Hiccup sighed. Usually he was more cautious about being seen during his scouting missions until he knew for sure the people weren't dangerous but it seemed he'd been distracted from the start in Dunbroch.</p><p>"Well the good thing is," Merida went on, "Lord Dingwall likes his ale a little too much..and so far my Dad has blamed the ale for his dragon sightings...but I fear if any more reports arise he'll take it more seriously and start a hunt for Toothless." As Hiccup gazed at her he could see there was genuine concern in her eyes.</p><p>"Hey don't worry," Hiccup replied as he placed a hand on her shoulder in reassurance, "we'll be more careful, I promise."</p><p>"I hope so," Merida replied, "my dad is a stubborn man...if he gets it in his head to hunt for Toothless, he'll not stop until he has his hide."</p><p>"No offense," Hiccup replied, "but your dad sounds a lot like a Viking,"</p><p>"Worse," Merida replied, "he's a Scotsman." Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"I have a feeling your people and mine would get along famously," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Seriously though Hiccup," she said with concern creeping back into her voice, "I just...I don't want anything to happen to ye...or Toothless."</p><p>"Nothing's going to happen," Hiccup said, " I promised we'd be careful and...I'm a man of my word...okay." Merida nodded.</p><p>"What were you scouting for anyway," she asked in curiosity.</p><p>"Oh..uh it's something I've been working on for a while now," he replied as he walked past her, "I'll show you." He pulled out a folded up piece of parchment. He opened it carefully, then knelt down as he laid the paper flat upon the ground.</p><p>"A map," Merida questioned. She knelt down to get a better look.</p><p>"Here see," he pointed to the newest addition to his ever evolving map.</p><p>"DunBroch," she smiled, "and here is Dingwall lands she pointed out and Macintosh and Macguffin, this is all my kingdom."</p><p>"Your father is the ruler of all four lands," Hiccup questioned. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Where is Berk," she asked.</p><p>"That would be all the way over here," he said. He pointed to a smaller island.</p><p>"That is a really far journey," she marveled.</p><p>"It's not so bad," he replied, "not with Toothless anyway...it's only about 3 days by dragon."</p><p>"So you've been putting together a map of all the lands surrounding Berk, Merida replied. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"See, up until about five years ago," Hiccup replied "Berk was at war with dragons, after having fought with them for almost 300 years. In all that time we lost most ties with other tribes...not to mention a good amount of our written history. I mean most of what we know has just been passed down by word of mouth...which is not always so accurate given how much Vikings tend to exaggerate."</p><p>"I'm beginning to think Vikings and Scots are cut from the same cloth," Merida replied. Hiccup chuckled out loud.</p><p>"Well, if your plan to win my heart with apples goes well," Hiccup smirked, "at least we know the in-laws will get along." He raised an eyebrow at her.</p><p>"Either that or they'll kill each other at the wedding," Merida smirked back. Hiccup couldn't contain his laughter.</p><p>"Yeah," he agreed amidst his laughter," that's probably a more likely outcome."</p><p>"Anyway," he continued, " I've been working on this map as a way of trying reconnect with other tribes again. I really want to rebuild Berk, and it's reputation, maybe reclaim some of our history. That and I'm trying to re-establish trade routes and peace treaties with as many of our surrounding tribes as possible. Also, now that Berk is a haven for dragons, it's beginning to get a little crowded. My hope is that we will come across some decent un-inhabited land to expand Berk, but so far no luck in that department."</p><p>"Well it sounds like a noble plan," Merrida replied, "yer tribe is right lucky to have ye as their chief."</p><p>"Thanks," Hiccup replied with a smile, "I'm just trying my best to live up to my dad's legacy really. I can only hope that someday I could maybe be at least half as good a leader as he was." Merida looked at him in sympathy.</p><p>"I'm sorry ye lost him," she said softly, "were ye close?" Hiccup sighed.</p><p>"We had sort of a complicated relationship," Hiccup replied, "but I did love him." Merida smiled warmly up at him. He averted his eyes slightly, as his mind drifted to his father.</p><p>"I don't know if I ever told him that...before," Hiccup said solemnly, "he was gone so unexpectedly...I just thought we'd have a lot more time."</p><p>"What happened to him," Merida asked softly.</p><p>"He was killed," Hiccup said grimly as his eyes inadvertently glanced at Toothless for a moment. He turned his eyes back to Merida. "By one of our enemies." Without thought Merida reached out and took his hand, she squeezed it reassuringly as she gazed at him in sympathy. Hiccup sighed heavily as he tried to push the memory of his father's death away from his mind. He looked up into Merida's eyes and smiled in appreciation of her simple show of compassion. He slowly pulled his hand from her's as he began to fold up his map. He then stuffed it back in his pocket.</p><p>"So how was it that after 300 years of war," Merida questioned, "ye came to befriend Toothless," Hiccup chuckled lightly.</p><p>"Well that's...a really kinda long and sorta complicated story," he replied as he sat back upon the ground in front of her, "I...uh I kinda...shot him down during a dragon attack."</p><p>"Ye what," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Yeah," he smiled half heartedly as he rubbed the back of his neck, "it's not exactly something I'm proud of now, but at the time all I wanted was to prove myself to my Dad, to prove that I could be a good Viking, that I could kill a dragon." He sighed heavily at the thought of his father.</p><p>"You might not be able to tell this about me," he went on, "but I've pretty much been a screw-up most of my life and I just wanted the chance to be taken seriously, ya know."</p><p>"By killing a dragon," Merida questioned.</p><p>Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"The dragon," Hiccup replied, "The one that no one in my village had ever even gotten close enough to kill before, a nightfury."</p><p>"Toothless," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"So what happened," Merida asked.</p><p>"Well," Hiccup sighed, "I shot him down with one of my inventions. I called it the mangler, it's basically a cannon that launches a bola. I spotted him, and I aimed, and it was a direct hit, first shot!" I couldn't believe it!"</p><p>He sighed again as he reminisced.</p><p>"The only problem was nobody else saw it and nobody believed me, not even my Dad. So I went out to find the dragon on my own, to bring home proof to my dad."</p><p>Merida just gazed at him enthralled in his story.</p><p>"I found him in the woods, tied up with the bola and I was absolutely terrified, but I had my dagger, and I was ready," he held his hands up over his head as if the dagger were still in his grasp.</p><p>"But he just laid there staring at me, he didn't fight, he didn't even try to get away. Then when I looked him in the eyes I didn't see a monster or a demon. I..I just saw him and he was just as terrified as I was. And I just..."</p><p>"Ye couldn't do it," Merida said softly. Hiccup nodded as he gazed up at her.</p><p>"It sounds a lot like how it was for ye and I," Merida said. Hiccup looked up at her in confusion.</p><p>"I thought all Vikings were dangerous, murdering scoundrels," Merida replied," but ye convinced me otherwise." Hiccup smiled at her analogy.</p><p>"I guess you're right," he chuckled, "it is similar, well I'm just glad I was as convincing as Toothless." Merida smiled.</p><p>"So what did ye do," she questioned.</p><p>"As much as I wanted my dad's approval, I knew killing him was wrong and so I freed him instead," Hiccup shrugged, "but his tail fin was destroyed, which, turns out is absolutely essential for a dragon to fly."</p><p>"Poor Toothless," Merida replied.</p><p>"Yeah well, he got even with me eventually," Hiccup said motioning to his false leg.</p><p>"Toothless did that," Merida questioned in surprise. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Sure did," Hiccup replied, "but that is a whole other story," he chuckled.</p><p>"If Toothless' tail was destroyed," Merida questioned, "how is it that he can fly now?"</p><p>"Well," Hiccup sighed, "after a lot of trial and error and a whole lot of crash landings," Hiccup went on, "I created a replacement fin for him. It straps to his tail and then I can control it with a petal near his saddle using my foot.</p><p>Long story short we've been a team ever since," Hiccup shrugged, "though the most recent tail fin I made for him does allow him to fly on his own now too. So technically he doesn't need me anymore but we're still a pretty good team. Anyway, it's really because of Toothless that I convinced my tribe that dragons didn't have to be our enemies and that they were mostly just misunderstood."</p><p>"So now," he went on, "Berk is a haven for dragons. We rely on them and they rely on us and it's great!"</p><p>"That is amazing Hiccup," Merida marveled.</p><p>"Eh...it's not that impressive," Hiccup replied dismissively as he stood up, "it was mostly like a series of accidents that basically worked out for the better." He offered her both his hands to help her up.</p><p>"Are ye kidding,"Merida replied. She slipped her hands in his and allowed him to pull her to her feet.</p><p>"Hiccup do ye not see what ye've done," she questioned. Hiccup gazed at her curiously.</p><p>"Not only did ye change yer own fate," she smiled, "but ye changed the fate of yer people and the dragons, and ye did it for the good of yer tribe. If that's not impressive, I don't know what is. From what I can tell ye are a good man Hiccup, and a damn good leader. That's something to be proud of. And if yer father were here today...he'd tell ye the same. Ye just need to have a little faith in yer self. Ye say yer father was a great leader?" Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Then trust in all that he passed to ye," she smiled, "yer father is still alive and well in here." She pointed to his heart, "as well as every lesson he's ever taught ye, trust in that and ye will always make him proud."</p><p>Hiccup gazed at her completely dumbfounded by the sincerity of her words.</p><p>Ever since he had taken over as Chief he had questioned his ability to lead, feeling as though he could never quite live up to the legacy of his father. He never wanted to be the leader of Berk but leadership had been thrust upon him after his father's sudden death. Since then he'd felt unequipped, and unprepared and still struggled with his feelings of inadequacy as Chief, and was still afraid to let his father down in some way.</p><p>Though his mother and even Astrid had tried to get Hiccup to see his own strengths and have confidence in his own abilities to lead, his insecurities still remained. He still held his father on an insurmountable pedestal and felt nothing he could do as Chief could ever compare. Merida's words had struck a cord in his heart. She made him see it from another perspective. That his father still lived on in him, his bravery, his heart, and in every lesson he'd ever learned from Stoick. What he had thought of dismissively as a lucky string of accidents, she had seen as the makings of a great leader and she called him out on his lack of pride in his, not so small, accomplishments.</p><p>There seemed to be nothing he could say that could even come close to expressing how much her unexpected words had truly meant to him. So he stood there wordlessly, her hands still clasped in his, gazing in amazement into the most beautiful blue eyes he'd ever seen.</p><p>"How...how is it that," he took a deep breath as he tried desperately to form his jumbled thoughts into coherent language, "how do you do that?"</p><p>"What," she questioned smiling up at him warmly.</p><p>"I don't know," he replied with a tender smile, "It...It's crazy, but it just feels like you see me, I mean the real me. I mean we literally just met and I...I just feel like...like you see me better than anyone." She smiled and shrugged.</p><p>"It's not hard," she replied, "to see the kind of person ye are Hiccup. Ye have a good heart and unlike most, ye actually follow it. It might have been a lot easier to follow the path expected of ye; instead ye went against everything ye ever knew and ye forged your own...now that's brave." He smiled slightly.</p><p>"Besides," she smirked, "Im an excellent judge of character."</p><p>"So it would seem," Hiccup replied as he smiled at her.</p><p>"As far as I can tell, yer a man of great virtue Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III," she continued, "maybe it's just harder for ye to see it for yourself, maybe ye just need someone to remind ye once in a while." She shrugged nonchalantly. He smiled at her tenderly, as he unwittingly leaned a little closer to her, his eyes never leaving her's. Had he any doubts before, he didn't now. Somehow he knew, this was just the start of something, the start of something good. It was inevitable and he knew with certainty that he was in serious danger of falling in love with this girl.</p><p>"You're, just," he smiled warmly, "you're amazing, you know that?" He brought his hand up to her pausing in uncertainty for just a moment, then gently brushed the wild red curls away from her face. To his surprise she didn't stop him nor back away as he thought she might.</p><p>"Thanks," he grinned.</p><p>She nodded as she smiled up at him.</p><p>"So," he grinned, "does this mean you still like me?"</p><p>"Aye," she smirked, " I still like ye...but don't push it." He chuckled at her response.</p><p>Yup, he was in serious, serious danger.</p><p>Suddenly they were distracted by a faint murmuring sound. Both turned simultaneously to see an all too familiar blue flame floating midair not a foot from where they both stood. Hiccup stared wide-eyed in disbelief.</p><p>"It's a...a...a floating blue flamey thingie."</p><p>"Will o' the wisp," Merida corrected.</p><p>"Will o' the what now," Hiccup replied glancing at her in confusion.</p><p>"Come on," she exclaimed as she pulled him by the hand, "we have to follow it!"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Will o’ the Wisp</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 11</p><p>Hiccup stumbled forward, still in shock at the sight of the wisp as Merida pulled him by the hand. They stopped just before the wisp. He gazed at the mysterious blue orb in awe and amazement.</p><p>"They're real," he questioned in disbelief.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "they're real."</p><p>"This is crazy," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean I saw them in a dream I had, but I...I didn't think they were real! I...I mean really, real...I mean...I thought they were just like...symbolic or something."</p><p>"Ye saw the will o' the wisp in a dream," she questioned as she gazed at him in sudden intrigue. Hiccup nodded silently as he continued to stare in shock at the wisp that hovered before them. He inadvertently reached out to the strange blue orb but, just like in the dream, as he got close enough to touch it, the wisp vanished and another appeared a few feet away. Hiccup drew his hand back quickly and glanced at Merida in intrigue.</p><p>"Let's go," Merida replied with urgency in her voice as she motioned for him to follow. They continued to follow the wisps one after the other until a trail of the wisps appeared before them.</p><p>"What exactly are they," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Nobody really knows for sure," Merida replied, "but it's said that they are ancient spirits tied to the land." Hiccup silently pondered Merida's words.</p><p>If the wisps were ancient spirits tied to this land, how then, had they reached out to him in his dream if he had never set foot on DunBroch before and he had no connection whatsoever to this land. Perhaps the spirits called to him because he was the direct descendent of Hiccup the first, who had. But if that were true, why now, why him? Why had they never called to his great grandfather Hiccup II, or his grandfather Ragnar the Bold; why not his father?</p><p>"It's also said that if ye see one and follow it," Merida went on, "that it will lead ye to yer fate." Hiccup glanced at her with a curious expression on his face.</p><p>"So are we talking good fate," Hiccup gulped, "or bad fate?"</p><p>"I guess that depends," Merida replied.</p><p>"On what," he questioned.</p><p>"I don't know exactly," Merida shrugged.</p><p>"Great," he replied flatly as he glanced at her in uncertainty, "and you're absolutely certain you want to follow them?" Merida chuckled.</p><p>"What do we have to lose," she questioned.</p><p>"Oh I don't know," he replied, "our lives maybe."</p><p>"Don't be so dramatic Hiccup," she chuckled, "their only wisps."</p><p>"Dramatic," he retorted, "I'm not being dramatic. I mean, we're just following strange blue ghost lights into the middle of the woods, no questions asked...what's there to be dramatic about?"</p><p>"Come on," she groaned as she grasped his hand again and pulled him forward.<br/>
As they continued to follow the trail of wisps, Merida glanced curiously in his direction.</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida inquired.</p><p>"Yeah," he replied as he turned to face her.</p><p>"Ye said ye saw the wisps in a dream," she replied.</p><p>"I did," he confirmed.</p><p>"What exactly was yer dream about," she asked curiously.</p><p>"Well," Hiccup replied, "I...I was in a forest like this and the wisps appeared to me. So I followed them and they led me to this strange place with large stones all lined up in a circle. When I stepped into the middle of the circle, this woman came from the shadows and she kept calling me by name. She took my hand and put my great great grandfather's pendent in my palm." Hiccup glanced at Merida briefly. She gazed ahead of them as they continued walking but she seemed to be deep in thought.</p><p>"And this place ye were led to," Merida questioned, "were the stones standing tall, with ancient carvings on them?"</p><p>"Yes," Hiccup replied curiously, "do you know it?"</p><p>"Aye, I know it," Merida replied, "we call them the standing stones. They've been here for thousands of years. No one really knows their purpose, but that place is said to be sacred ground." Hiccup pondered her words for a moment before continuing.</p><p>"It was only a day or so after I had the first dream that I found an old map of DunBroch in my great great grandfather's things. I noticed he had marked the stones on it, so he thought they were important enough to record their location." Merida listened in intrigue as he spoke.</p><p>"I knew then that I had to follow wherever these dreams seemed to be leading me," Hiccup continued, "I can't really explain it but I just feel like there is something I have to do here or...or maybe find, I don't know."</p><p>"The first dream," she questioned, "were there others?"</p><p>"Yes, the same dream actually, every night in fact," Hiccup paused as a thought occurred to him, "that is, until I got here." Merida fell silent as she pondered his words. He looked at her curiously wondering what was going through her mind.</p><p>"So in yer dream," Merida replied, "not only did ye see the wisps, but ye saw the standing stones as well." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Honestly the dream is really the reason why I came here," Hiccup went on, "I mean, when I was scouting around here before, I had planned to come back eventually to possibly suggest an alliance with your people but when I realized that my dreams were somehow connected to this place...I mean, when I realized the stones I saw in my dream could actually be a real, actual place, I just needed to see them for myself." He glanced at Merida again. Merida looked back at him with an intrigued expression on her face.</p><p>"What about the woman in your dream," Merida questioned, "what was she like?"</p><p>"Well, see, that's uh kinda a little harder to explain. W-when I saw her; when she touched my hand," Hiccup took a deep breath as he turned his eyes back to the trail of wisps, "it...it felt like I knew her somehow. It...it just felt so familiar, yet it was unlike anything I ever felt before, if that makes sense. Now, I know this is going to sound really crazy, but I know the woman from my dream is the same woman in my grandfather's drawing. And after what you and I discovered yesterday, I'm pretty sure she was also your great great nana." Merida gazed at him wide-eyed.</p><p>"Ye believe that ye saw my great great nana in yer dream," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded. She gazed at him with a shocked and puzzled expression on her face.</p><p>"I know...it's crazy" Hiccup replied as he glanced at her, "but yeah, I do!" Merida furrowed her brow in thought.</p><p>"Well, what did she look like," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Well I don't actually know," Hiccup replied, "I...I can never see her face in my dream, her face is always hidden under the hood of her cloak. Merida gazed at him curiously.</p><p>"Well how can ye be so sure the woman in yer dream is the same as the one in the drawing if ye could never see her face," Merida questioned, "how could ye know it's my great great nana?"</p><p>"Well, mostly it's because of the pendent," Hiccup replied, "I mean, in the drawing she's wearing the same pendent that the woman gave me in my dream." Merida gazed at him in intrigue.</p><p>"The thing is," he continued, "I didn't even know that the pendent or the drawing even existed before I had that dream. Like I said, I didn't find them till later."</p><p>"Well that makes sense I guess," Merida replied.</p><p>"Yeah, but the even stranger thing," Hiccup replied, "is that it...it's also a...a feeling."</p><p>"A feeling," Merida questioned, "what sort o' feeling?"</p><p>"Well it...it's sort of complicated and hard to explain exactly" Hiccup replied, "it's a...a really strong feeling." Merida looked at him expectantly. He glanced at her for a moment. She could see a blush creeping over his face.</p><p>"Well it...it was kinda like," Hiccup paused a moment feeling slightly self-conscious talking about the feelings from his dream, "well, like an attraction but stronger." He glanced at her, she gazed back at him questioningly.</p><p>"But..uh...what I mean is, uh, not like a...a physical attraction, uh...I mean not like, I'm attracted to you." Merida turned to him suddenly with wide eyes. The blush on Hiccup's face deepened.</p><p>"Uh...that is, I meant, uh...that was an example," he said quickly, "I...I didn't mean me or...or you personally...uh I just meant like in general, how generally a man is attracted to a woman," he cleared his throat as he turned his eyes to the trail once again.</p><p>"I...I meant more like how a magnet is drawn to metal...or...or like a moth to a flame." Hiccup continued to gaze at the trail ahead with a mortified expression on his face. Merida tried her best to stifle a giggle.</p><p>"So ye were drawn to her then," Merida replied as she crossed her arms over her chest and grinned up at him.</p><p>"Y-Yeah," he said as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck, "b-basically." Merida nodded.</p><p>"See, not so complicated," she replied. Hiccup grinned at her.</p><p>"Well maybe if I'd known you sooner," Hiccup smirked, "I'd have learned how not to overcomplicate a simple answer." She smirked at him as she raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"And how not to put yer foot in yer mouth," she replied with a sly grin. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"That too," he shrugged, "of course if you'd have known me before I was so smooth with the ladies you might not like me as much."</p><p>"Aye, ye are many things Hiccup," Merida chuckled, "but smooth ye are not."</p><p>"No kidding," he chuckled, "but it was far worse when I was younger. I mean my nickname was fish bone, and tooth pick. I was easily the smallest Viking in my village not to mention accident prone, and socially awkward."</p><p>"Well that may be so, but if ye were the same then as ye are now in here," she pointed to his heart, "then I'd have liked ye just fine."</p><p>Hiccup smiled at her warmly.</p><p>"Careful princess," he grinned as he crossed his arms over his chest, "I may start to think you really are trying to win my heart." He smirked at her as he raised an eyebrow. Merida blushed slightly as she rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Bet ye'd like that wouldn't ye," she replied haughtily. Hiccup furrowed his brow for a moment as he tried to formulate a witty comment to come back at her with but the only word in his brain was a resounding 'yes.'</p><p>"I...I'm not gonna lie princess," he shrugged, "I wouldn't complain." He cleared his throat as a slight blush arose on his cheeks. She raised an eyebrow at him again.</p><p>"Is that so," she replied as she crossed her arms over her chest.</p><p>"Wouldn't you like to know," he replied haughtily as he passed her. Merida smirked at him. She jogged a few feet to catch up to him.</p><p>"Tell me more about this dream o' yers," Merida replied changing the subject.</p><p>"Right," he replied, "where was I...?"</p><p>"Ye felt drawn to the woman in yer dream," Merida replied.</p><p>"Oh yeah, see the thing is, that feeling, it...it was sort of a little more than just feeling drawn to her," Hiccup went on, "I mean, I know now that the woman was calling my grandfather's name and not mine. But the way she spoke, and the way she acted towards me...it all just felt so personal and...and sort of intimate in a way." Merida remained quiet as she thought about what he'd said. Hiccup glanced over at her feeling slightly awkward.</p><p>"It was...it was like she knew me," Hiccup went on, "like she knew me to my soul." Merida turned and gazed up at him curiously. Her mind flashed briefly to the Viking from her own dream and those intense eyes that seemed to peer into her very soul.</p><p>"And that feeling from my dream," Hiccup went on, "is the same feeling I had when I found the drawing of the woman in my great great grandfather's book."</p><p>"Ye said she spoke to ye," Merida questioned, "what did she say exactly?"</p><p>"She said, 'it's you, it's always been you'," Hiccup replied, "now, I'm not sure exactly what that means but there was such emotion in her voice when she spoke." Merida just gazed ahead of them as she pondered what he'd told her. Hiccup gazed over at her, curious as to what she was thinking.</p><p>"Look, I...I know this all sounds crazy right," he replied, "I...I mean even as I'm telling you, I can hear how crazy it all sounds." Merida glanced up at him with a curious expression.</p><p>"My friend back home sorta has a theory though," Hiccup continued, "he thinks that maybe the spirit in my dream is somehow projecting its own emotions onto me."</p><p>"Like making ye feel what she felt," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Exactly," Hiccup replied, "I mean, that's the idea, though, I'm not a hundred percent sure that is the case."</p><p>"What do ye mean exactly," Merida asked.</p><p>"So the way I felt when she spoke to me," Hiccup replied, "I wonder if it was more like my grandfather's emotions that I felt."</p><p>"What makes ye say that," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Well, because I...well I...I just wanted to...to be with her, I...I didn't want her to leave, I wanted to...to hold her in my arms and never let her go. It was sort of overwhelming and it...it almost felt like...like the feeling of..."</p><p>"Being in love," she replied absentmindedly. Hiccup nodded silently.</p><p>"My mom literally said the same thing," Hiccup replied, "I told her she was crazy."</p><p>"Ye did not," Merida replied.</p><p>"Yeah well, what was I supposed to say to all this craziness," Hiccup replied, "just admit that I think I might be feeling my grandfather's feelings about some woman that's basically a ghost!"</p><p>"Why are men so stubborn when it comes to feelings," Merida groaned.</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup chuckled, "because it's...it's embarrassing...and...and it's not manly, I guess. I mean, I'm a Viking for crying out loud, I can't just go around talking about my feelings all the time." Merida glared at him. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Particularly these feelings," he replied, "about some imaginary woman." Merida scoffed.</p><p>"She's not exactly imaginary," Merida replied as she raised an eyebrow at him. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"Look it'd be a lot different if this was an actual live person we were talking about here," Hiccup replied, "but this...this is just too weird." He looked at her again. She seemed to be in deep thought.</p><p>"See, I told you," he sighed, "It all sounds completely insane, you probably think I'm some sort of a...a lunatic...or something..."</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida interrupted in a serious tone, "yer not crazy!" He turned to her in curiosity.</p><p>"I...I had a dream like that as well," she went on, "recurring too. The last one not a day before we met!" Hiccup gazed at her with an expression of shock and surprise on his face.</p><p>"Wait," Hiccup replied in disbelief, "are...are you saying...that you and I had the same dream?"</p><p>"Not exactly," Merida replied, "See, like ye, in my dream I am also led to the standing stones by the will o' the wisp." Hiccup gazed at her in intrigue.</p><p>"Only, I saw a Viking there," Merida said.</p><p>"A Viking," Hiccup questioned in surprise.</p><p>"Aye a Viking," Merida replied, "he had a Viking helm with horns and it covered his face. So I couldn't really see what he looked like but I could still see his eyes. His were the greenest eyes I've ever seen." She glanced up at Hiccup briefly but quickly averted her gaze.</p><p>"Much like yer's actually," she replied, "only his eyes were filled with such sorrow. They were haunting practically. The man seemed very sad and his demeanor forlorn; it...it was like his heart was breaking at the sight of me. When he looked at me it...it felt like he could see right through me, to my very soul! I was scared at first because I was unsure of his intentions but then he knelt before me and he took my hand. Then he gave me the pendent and said 'my heart is your's.'" Merida paused a moment as she glanced up at Hiccup.</p><p>But when he touched my hand to give me the pendent it was...well, it was unlike anything I ever felt before," Merida continued, "it almost felt like...like being struck by lightning if that makes sense. I mean, my heart was beating so fast it felt like it'd burst from my chest." Hiccup just gazed at her dumbfounded.</p><p>"And the very sight of him gazing up at me with those eyes, it just, it made me want to...to just wrap him in my arms and try to soothe his heartbreak, if only a little," Merida went on, "he called me by my great great nana's name, so I do believe he was seeking my nana. But it still felt strangely personal...like even though he spoke to my nana, somehow his words were also meant for me. Does that make any sense?"</p><p>"Honestly," Hiccup replied, "none of this makes sense...I mean it feels like the more we discover the more questions we have. I really have no idea what to make of all of this."</p><p>"Well that's not all," Merida said, "maybe a day or so before my first dream, the wisps led me to the place where my great great nana's journal and the sketch book were hidden behind a tapestry in the castle wall."</p><p>Merida continued walking again as Hiccup stood in shock for a moment. He thought over everything she had just told him. It all seemed as if he and Merida had been placed on the same path. But the reason still remained unclear.</p><p>"Hey Merida...wait," Hiccup called out as he ran to catch up to her. She stopped and turned to him.</p><p>"Uh, about the pendant," Hiccup questioned, "you never told me, h-how exactly did you find it?"</p><p>"I didn't," Merida replied, "my father gave it to me."</p><p>"D-did your father mention anything significant about it when he gave it to you," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"No, not particularly," Merida replied, "I mean, he didn't know much about the pendant itself, he just said that nana never spoke of it but it seemed of great importance to her. He thought that my great great grand-da gave it to her, which, clearly now we know that wasn't so." As Hiccup listened he seemed to be deep in thought.</p><p>"All I know for certain is that when my father was just a wee lad he and great great nana shared a special bond, she left him the pendant when she passed. When I was born he named me for her, and he's always said that I remind him of her. After my twenty first birthday he passed the pendant to me."</p><p>"About how long ago would you say it was that he gave it to you," he asked. Merida thought for a moment.</p><p>"Maybe a little over two weeks or so," she replied.</p><p>"Was it around that time when your dreams of the Viking started," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Come to think of it," Merida replied, "it wasn't much long after, I mean first I found the journal and then my dreams started. He gazed at her with wide eyes.</p><p>"This is crazy," he said. She looked up at him curiously.</p><p>"This all started happening to us both around the same time," Hiccup replied, "what do you think it could all mean?"</p><p>"I don't know," Merida replied, "I mean, I thought my dream was influenced by reading my nana's journal, but now that I know that ye had nearly the same dream as I, it makes me think otherwise. It...it's not a coincidence of that I'm sure. Honestly, it...it feels more like fate that we met Hiccup." She turned to him with a slightly puzzled expression on her face.</p><p>"It seems that ye and I have been drawn to the same path," she continued, "I do wonder what we're being led to though." Hiccup glanced in her direction curiously.</p><p>"What do you mean exactly," he questioned.</p><p>"Like I said before, the will o' the wisp are supposed to lead ye to yer fate," Merida replied, "but that fate is often not what ye think nor what yer expecting. Ye may think ye know when ye follow but they have a way of leading ye to a fate ye never even considered or even knew is what ye wanted in the first place."</p><p>"It sounds like you know from experience," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "I followed them once before." Hiccup gazed at her in curiosity. She glanced up at him for a moment before turning her eyes back to the trail of wisps as they both continued walking, "it's a long story though."</p><p>"Well I have time," Hiccup replied with a shrug. Merida smiled.</p><p>"Well, see, my mother and I...well as long as I can remember, we've had a bit of a difficult relationship," Merida replied," she always wanted me to be the perfect, proper princess that does as she's told, doesn't have weapons, doesn't speak out of turn, and strives for perfection!" She rolled her eyes. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Aye," Merida smiled, "everything I'm not nor ever wanted to be."</p><p>"Sounds like me and my dad a bit," Hiccup replied, "he always wanted a big sturdy Viking boy who could wrestle a dragon with his bare hands. Instead he got me, a thin wiry runt that couldn't wrestle a sheep let alone a dragon. He was always like 'if you can't kill a dragon, you're not my son.' "</p><p>"That's a bit harsh isn't it," Merida replied.</p><p>"He was a Viking, all he knew was harsh," Hiccup shrugged, "but it worked itself out. I mean, eventually, at the end we were close." Merida laid a hand on his shoulder in sympathy. Hiccup nodded in her direction and smiled, silently thanking her for the small comfort.</p><p>"Look at it this way," Merida smiled, "yer father may not have gotten the strapping dragon killing son he always wanted..."</p><p>"Geeze Merida," Hiccup whined, "you just made me feel so much better about myself just now." She smirked at him and hit him playfully on the arm. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"If ye'd let me finish," she replied, "I was going to say, what he did get was much better. Ye may not be a big a muscular brute, but yer smart, kind-hearted, and brave."</p><p>"You forgot adorable, princess," Hiccup smirked in her direction. She smirked back at him.</p><p>"Hey, your words, not mine," Hiccup chuckled as he put his hands up in defense.</p><p>"Anyway," Merida sighed, "where was I, oh; so about five years ago it all came to a head when my mother announced my impending betrothal."</p><p>"Betrothal," Hiccup questioned. His heart froze for a moment as the word sunk into his brain.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "'it's been tradition that when the princess comes of age, the Lords of each clan present their firstborn sons to compete for her hand in marriage."</p><p>"Oh," Hiccup replied feeling a pit in his stomach suddenly, "so I take it that it didn't go over so well with you."</p><p>"Of course not " Merida exclaimed, "I was furious! I mean how dare she just try to marry me off like...like I'm just tradable goods. I wanted nothing to do with it! I didn't even want to get married at all, let alone to someone I barely knew! And just because they won some stupid game!"</p><p>"Sounds about right," Hiccup grinned.</p><p>"All I could see was that my entire life was being laid out before me and I had no say in the matter," Merida replied," I was desperate to change my fate!"</p><p>"What did you do," Hiccup asked in intrigue.</p><p>"Well, the Lords came to present their sons," Merida continued, "now, as per tradition, the princess gets to choose the event in which they compete." She raised an eyebrow as she smirked up at him. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Let me guess," Hiccup smirked, "you chose archery." Merida smiled with a devilish grin.</p><p>"Aye, I did," Merida replied proudly, "and after they all took their shot, I snuck away with my bow to the shooting grounds. I stood before the Lords and I told them since I was the first born of clan DunBroch I'd be shooting for my own hand. Then I hit every target dead on," she held up her hands as if she were clutching her bow, "I even split Wee Dingwall's arrow straight down the middle." Merida smiled proudly. Hiccup gazed at her impressed.</p><p>"Oh I would have loved to see that," Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Really," Merida smirked.</p><p>"Believe me princess," Hiccup replied with a grin, "there is nothing more attractive than a girl who can blow the competition away." Merida chuckled.</p><p>"Yeah, tell that to the Lord's sons," Merida chuckled, "the wee lambs had never been beaten by a girl before so their pride was just a wee bit hurt to say the least."</p><p>"If I had been there," Hiccup paused, "well, I'd of lost the competition, no question, but watching you outshoot my opponents, you'd have won my heart for sure." Merida blushed at his comment.</p><p>"Is that so," she replied.</p><p>"Most definitely," he smiled, "But then, I guess I kinda have a thing for assertive women." He cleared his throat. She raised an eyebrow at him. Hiccup chuckled as a blush crept over his cheeks.</p><p>"So did they call off the betrothal," Hiccup asked, changing the subject.</p><p>"Oh no," Merida replied, "far from it, the Lords were offended. Everyone was fighting over what to do about it. They were practically about to start a war over the whole bloody thing! They wanted a betrothal regardless. My mother was furious. We had a terrible fight and I ran away."</p><p>"You ran away," Hiccup questioned, "where did you go?"</p><p>"I didn't care where," Merida replied, "I just wanted to be as far away from my mother as possible! I rode until Angus and I came upon the standing stones and it was there that the will o' the wisp appeared to me. I thought my prayers were answered, so I followed and the wisps led me to a witch's cottage in the middle of the woods."</p><p>"A witch," Hiccup questioned in surprise.</p><p>"Aye a witch,"Merida answered, "I thought the wisps led me there to change my fate, I thought she could use her magic to change it."</p><p>"And did she," Hiccup asked in intrigue, "did the witch change your fate?"</p><p>"Not exactly," Merida replied, "see, I thought if I could change my mum that I could change my fate, so I asked her for a spell to change my mum."</p><p>"Did it work," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "the spell changed my mum alright, it changed her into a bear!"</p><p>"A bear," Hiccup questioned in confusion, "like, she was worse then before?"</p><p>"No," Merida smirked," like a real bear, fur and claws and all!"</p><p>"Are you kidding me," Hiccup replied disbelievingly.</p><p>"It's the truth," Merida replied, "I coudnae believe it myself, and I instantly regretted it! All I wanted was for my mum to change her mind about my betrothal, not turn her into a bear!"</p><p>"And I thought my story was crazy," Hiccup replied in near disbelief.</p><p>"So," Merida continued, "mum and I set into the woods to find the witch to reverse the spell. Basically spent days searching and when we finally found her cottage, the witch was gone!" Hiccup gazed wide-eyed in her direction.</p><p>"We only found a message from her that said that only I could break the spell," Merida said, "but I had only until sunrise that day to do so, or my poor mum would stay a bear forever!"</p><p>"You had only til sunrise to break the spell," Hiccup questioned, "did she at least tell you how to break it?"</p><p>"She only gave me a riddle," Merida replied, 'Fate be changed, look inside, mend the bond torn by pride.' Mum and I assumed she meant to mend the tapestry of our family that I had torn in anger. So we went back to the castle for the tapestry, but my dad discovered us. He didnae believe the bear was my mum, he thought the bear took mum and he was fixed to hunt her down!" Hiccup continued to gaze at her wide-eyed.</p><p>"He chased mum to the standing stones and when I got to them, I had to fight him off myself to get him to listen," Merida continued, "and just when I thought all hope was lost the sun rose. I thought for sure we were too late. But the spell broke and my mum was my mum again."</p><p>"So the tapestry worked," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"No," Merrida replied, "it turns out the bond I had to mend was the one between me and my mother, that's what brought her back. In all our bickering, my mother and I had all but forgotten who the other was and how much we meant to each other. All the time we spent together trying to break the spell, we mended our bond. In the end mum decided to break tradition and allow me to marry in my own time, to someone of my own choosing." Hiccup let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding when he heard her last words.</p><p>"Do ye see," Merida replied, "I ran away from my mum and the wisps led me back again. The fate they led me to was about mending the bond between me and my mother, something even I didnae think possible. Changing my mum wasn't the answer I had to change myself first." Merida smiled, "I guess you could say I went on a journey to change my fate, but fate found me along the way." Hiccup smiled to himself.</p><p>"What," she asked curiously.</p><p>"Nothing," he said, "you just reminded me of something my mom told me before I left." Merida gazed up at him expectantly.</p><p>"Let's hear it then," Merida replied.</p><p>"Well, it's a little different," Hiccup replied, "but kind of along the same lines."</p><p>"Go on then," Merida replied.</p><p>"It was something like...; 'Fate finds you on the very road you take to avoid it," he replied.</p><p>"She sounds like a wise woman," Merida replied. Hiccup nodded in agreement.</p><p>"It also sounds a bit like ye were maybe running away from something though," she said. Hiccup took a deep breath.</p><p>"Maybe," he replied absentmindedly.</p><p>"Alright, out with it," Merida replied shoving him playfully as they walked.</p><p>"Hey," he chuckled, "come on...it's not really something I want to talk about."</p><p>Merida gazed at him expectantly.</p><p>"Alright," Hiccup groaned, "so when I told my mom about the dream I had and I showed her my sketch of the pendent, that's when she pulled this out." He held up his pendent once more. Merida gazed at him wide-eyed.</p><p>"She had it the whole time," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Apparently my dad gave it to her when they got married," Hiccup replied sith a shrug, "it's been passed down since my great great grandfather with explicit instructions to only be given to your one true love." Merida looked up at him curiously.</p><p>"So, naturally, my mom thinks this whole dream thing is some sort of a...a sign that I'm supposed to, ya know, go out and I guess, find my true love or something like that." Hiccup said quickly.</p><p>"And ye disagree," Merida replied.</p><p>"Yeah, well it...it's a little ridiculous," Hiccup replied flatly, "true love...soul mates...I mean come on!"</p><p>"Sounds like ye might be a bit of a cynic when it comes to love Hiccup," Merida replied, "might there be a reason for that?" She crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at him expectantly.</p><p>"You should talk," Hiccup replied sarcastically, "I mean you ran away to avoid your betrothal!"</p><p>"Aye, but that's a wee bit different though," Merida replied, "my betrothal had nothing to do with love. I was to be married to whoever was the best shot!"</p><p>"Yeah," Hiccup sighed as he thought about it more," I guess it is different."</p><p>"Now that I'm free to chose for myself, I am just a wee bit more open to the possibility of finding love," she paused, "real love, I mean, like what our great great grandparents obviously had."</p><p>"Yeah well, obviously, their love story didn't turn out so great, now did it; otherwise we wouldn't be here trying to find out what happened to them," Hiccup huffed, "so much for true love."</p><p>"You are running from something," Merida smirked. Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Come on then," Merida replied, "let's hear it."</p><p>"Okay look," he groaned, " I'm not running from anything. It's...it's more like, a...avoiding I guess." Hiccup paused for a long moment, somewhat reluctant to explain any further. Merida raised an eyebrow at him expectantly. He glanced at her and sighed.</p><p>"I'm not getting out of this am I," Hiccup replied flatly. Merida smirked at him.</p><p>"Alright, alright," Hiccup sighed, "so, there was this...girl back home, I...I was in love with her and we were together for a while but it didn't work out." Merida felt her heart drop to her stomach at Hiccup's admission.</p><p>"Now," he went on, "long story short, she's married...to someone else."</p><p>"Are ye still in love with her then," Merida asked softly.</p><p>"At first I...," Hiccup sighed, feeling extremely awkward, "Well, I...I was madly in love with Astrid from the start, I mean she was the first person who ever really gave me a chance. For a little while it was good, I think she loved me too. But as time went on, we just started to want different things and we grew apart and so we agreed to go our separate ways. She's still one of my good friends though."</p><p>"That's not what I asked," Merida replied, "I asked if yer still in love with her." Hiccup looked over at Merida curiously, trying his best to decipher her feelings.</p><p>"Well...no, not like in the beginning...I...I mean...not like when we were together at all really," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean, I still care about her, ya know, as a friend." Merida nodded silently as she pondered his words. Hiccup sighed.</p><p>"Sometimes, I do think about what could have been," Hiccup replied. He glanced at her briefly.</p><p>"I...I mean I wonder if I had done something differently would it have changed anything, would it have made a difference," Hiccup sighed, "I mean there were a lot of mistakes that I made."</p><p>Hiccup sighed again as he tried to get his thoughts straight.</p><p>"Honestly, even though we agreed it was for the best, and it is," Hiccup continued, "it...it still hurt, ya know. And seeing her so happy with someone else hurts too." Merida silently nodded.</p><p>"But it..it's not so much the fact that she's happier with someone else as it is the fact that I...I just failed so miserably at making her happy when I had the chance." Hiccup glanced at Merida once more but she remained focused on the trail ahead, silently listening to him. Her quietness made Hiccup feel uneasy and he wondered what was going through her mind.</p><p>"Anyway," he continued on, "because I have not found anyone else or haven't even been looking really, my mom seems to think I've been avoiding it and I guess she feels like I'm afraid of love; hence the words of wisdom." Merida remained quiet.</p><p>"But I'm not," Hiccup went on, "afraid that is. I...I just haven't really wanted anything to do with love since then, I guess. I...I mean, it just hasn't been a priority is all. I've been more focused on, ya know, leading Berk and my map, and..." He glanced over at her briefly, "I..I mean, it's not that I don't want it at all, because I...I do. I...I mean, I may, might, that is eventually...someday." Hiccup took a deep breath. Merida paused for a moment as she turned and gazed up at him.</p><p>"Maybe ye are," she replied.</p><p>"What," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Afraid of love," Merida replied.</p><p>"Come on," Hiccup groaned, "not you too! See, this is exactly why I didn't want to talk about it!"</p><p>"It's okay ye know," she replied, "to be afraid." Hiccup glanced at her curiously.</p><p>"Ye've been hurt," Merida stated matter of factly, "but it seems to me yer not afraid of love itself as much as yer afraid of failing at it." Hiccup just gazed at her once again struck wordless by her ability to talk sense into him.</p><p>"Her happiness is a reminder of yer failure," Merida went on, "yer afraid of going through that heartbreak again, but ye cannae let that fear stop ye from finding love again." She stepped closer to him and pressed a hand firmly to his chest. His mind inadvertently flashed briefly to the woman in his dream.</p><p>"Ye need to open yer heart to the possibility," she shrugged, "otherwise when love does find ye, and it will, ye could miss it." She turned and continued to walk along the trail of wisps. Hiccup just stood for a moment processing her words. She was right, as much as he tried to deny it to himself. Ever since Astrid had announced her engagement, all he could see was his epic failure at love and all he wanted to do was avoid it ever since.</p><p>He watched as Merida walked ahead. She seemed to have the uncanny ability to make him see things in a different way and think about them from an angle that hadn't quite occurred to him before. Not only that, but Merida seemed so easy to talk to, he felt he could very easily open up to her and be honest about his thoughts and feelings. As he gazed at her, he couldn't help but to feel that maybe they had met for a reason other than their great great grandparent's quest and he couldn't help but wonder if maybe she could be his second chance. He found himself suddenly concerned that he'd said too much to Merida concerning Astrid and his complicated feelings for the girl he once loved. He jogged up beside her.</p><p>"Hey, Merida wait, uh...listen, uh..." Hiccup said, "about what I told you, a-about Astrid, I uh...I just, I don't want you to get the wrong idea."</p><p>"What idea," Merida questioned in confusion.</p><p>"I...I just don't want you to think that there was anything...uh..." Hiccup sighed as he struggled to get his thoughts straight.</p><p>"What I mean is...I'm not," he sighed, "I'm not like pining after her or anything. I mean, I think about what went wrong sometimes but not because I want her back or anything." Merida averted her gaze for a moment as she listened.</p><p>"Ye know Hiccup," she replied with a slightly amused grin, "ye don't need to explain yerself to me."</p><p>"No, uh I...I know that I don't need to," Hiccup replied, "but I just want to make sure that you know that everything with Astrid is...is in the past..." Merida gazed up at him for a long moment unsure of what exactly he was trying to say.</p><p>"And, why exactly do you feel like you need to go out of your way to tell me this," Merida questioned. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"I, uh, I don't know exactly," he replied rubbing the back of his neck nervously, "I just, uh, I...I didn't want you to think that I was like, still hung up on her or...or anything. Uh, because I'm not and, uh, I guess I just didn't want whatever you thought or whatever it sounded like...I mean, I just didn't want any of it to hinder us, uh...uh, ya know, from being friends, I mean." She noticed the slight blush on his face and smiled.</p><p>"Why would that stop us from being friends Hiccup," Merida questioned. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"I don't know," he chuckled lightly feeling a bit awkward. She raised an eyebrow at him questioningly. Hiccup could feel his heart racing and his stomach doing flip flops.</p><p>"What uh...what about you," Hiccup asked changing the subject. She turned her eyes back to the trail ahead.</p><p>"What about me," she asked.</p><p>"Have you ever been in love before," Hiccup asked, "I mean, I know you're not betrothed and all, but was there ever...uh anyone you, like, cared about that way or...or still do maybe?" Merida could feel her cheeks flush but she kept her gaze on the trail ahead. Hiccup took notice of her blush and smiled to himself.</p><p>"No actually," Merida answered as she cleared her throat, "I...I haven't. In...in fact, I'd say love has always been the furthest thing from my mind."</p><p>"Really," Hiccup replied. Merida glanced up at him briefly, feeling a bit diffident.</p><p>"What," she questioned self-consciously.</p><p>"Nothing, nothing," Hiccup replied, "I guess I just figured someone like you would have ya know someone that they cared about, or maybe cared about them ya know like a...a...a boyfriend I guess."</p><p>"No," Merida replied quickly, "I...I dinnae have anyone like that."</p><p>"No," Hiccup questioned in interest, "not anyone?" Merida shook her head.</p><p>"I guess you probably have guys lined up around the kingdom trying to win your heart, huh," Hiccup replied as he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Yeah, my throne, more like," Merida scoffed, "I haven't met a one interested in my heart." She crossed her arms over her chest as she focused on the trail ahead, trying her best to seem flippant about the subject.</p><p>"Not one," Hiccup questioned skeptically. Merida shook her head as she glanced up at him.</p><p>"It's not exactly a big deal, Hiccup," Merida replied. "I mean none in my family has ever even married for love, not even my parents. They were only married because they were betrothed. They were lucky though, they fell in love later."</p><p>"Huh," Hiccup replied, thinking heavily on her words, "we've always been allowed to marry for love in Berk. I mean, I believe love should be the only reason that you marry someone. Don't you?" Merida glanced up at him with a look of uncertainty on her face.</p><p>"Ye would think that," Merida replied in slight frustration, "and maybe it's so for the commoners, but not for the princess. For me it's all about politics and choosing the right suitor because whoever he be, he'd be the next king of Dunbroch. And they can't have just anyone sit on the throne can they? Forget that it's my throne they'd be sitting on. But God forbid a woman should sit on her own throne without being wed!"</p><p>"Now wait, you mean you can't take the throne unless you get married," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "the Lords are adamant about it...which is why my mum is so up in arms about the fact that I still have yet to choose. She won't say it outright but I know it's weighing on her."</p><p>"Well what's the rush," Hiccup questioned, "if you are to marry in your own time like she promised you?"</p><p>"Well it's not really a rush I guess," Merida replied, "Well, see, the thing is, being as though I've just passed my twenty first birthday, which is technically the age I'd be getting married if I'd been betrothed and all, I guess she's just getting anxious about it."</p><p>"I still don't get it," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"What," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Why you can't take the throne without a husband," Hiccup questioned, "I mean what bearing does that have on your role as queen?" Merida shrugged.</p><p>"It's tradition," Merida replied, "it's been that way for generations. The Lords are stubborn and set in their ways. She glanced over at him. "Doesn't Berk have any traditions?"</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied, "but none of our traditions are so strict when it comes to things like...like marriage and love a-and it's not a big deal if the Chief isn't married. I...I mean, it's recommended of course, uh...ya know, to produce heirs and all...I guess, but it's not like a requirement or anything."</p><p>"Well, has there ever been a Chief that was a woman in Berk," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Well...no," Hiccup replied, "but there also hasn't exactly been any women in my line yet either, not in generations really. But if my first born happens to be a girl, she would be the next Chief." Merida glanced up at him. Hiccup smiled at her slightly and averted his gaze.</p><p>"Ya know uh...if...if I ever choose to get married," he cleared his throat, "I mean if I ever found someone who uh...ya know would settle for all of this." He chuckled under his breath.</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida laughed, "don't sell yer self short, yer a catch ye know."</p><p>"Please...I'm sub-par husband material by Viking women's standards," Hiccup replied sarcastically.</p><p>"Well...what about Astrid," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Oh right...the girl who married someone who's not me," Hiccup said flatly.</p><p>"She still saw ye for what yer worth though," Merida replied, "ye said so yer self, I mean, sure it didn't work out, but if ye weren't worth it she wouldn't have given ye the time a day to begin with." Hiccup gazed at her curiously as she spoke.</p><p>"And besides, her loss...is definitely another girl's gain," Merida shrugged, "ye know, if ever ye choose a lass who can handle...all of that." She smirked up at him. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"You are something else princess," he replied, "ya know that." He gazed at her for a long moment thinking over all she had said. Merida shrugged nonchalantly as she continued following the trail. He smiled to himself. Merida was unlike any girl he'd ever met and he was completely taken with her.</p><p>"Well, at least you can marry for love now," Hiccup said. Merida turned her gaze back to him once more with a look of uncertainty on her face.</p><p>"You know," he went on, "uh, since your mom told you that you could marry who you choose."</p><p>"I guess so," Merida said as she turned her eyes back to the trail ahead.</p><p>"Geeze Merida," Hiccup replied, "try not to be too happy about that."</p><p>"I am happy to have my freedom to choose," Merida replied firmly, "but it's just...it's not really as simple as all that for me."</p><p>"What do you mean," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Look, I...I've never been in love before," Merida replied, "but I'm fairly certain ye have no control over who ye fall for."</p><p>"True," Hiccup replied with a smile, "but isn't that a reason to be glad to make your own choice?"</p><p>"Well I'm still the princess," Merida replied, "I'm still next in line for the throne. As much as I wish it otherwise, my obligation is to my people and not necessarily my heart." With her unexpected words, Hiccup's heart seemed to freeze mid-beat.</p><p>"I'm sorry," Hiccup replied, "I'm just a little confused, I thought the whole reason you went against your mom was so you could choose to marry for love. I mean, didn't you just say that now that you can choose for yourself, that you are more open to the possibility of finding love?"</p><p>"Well, I did and...and I am," Merida replied, "but I'm also realistic about it."</p><p>"Realistic," Hiccup repeated, "what does that mean?"</p><p>"I mean, even though I'm open to the possibility," Merida replied, "that it's still best to choose with my head and not my heart." Hiccup paused a moment as his heart seemed to drop to his feet.</p><p>"Going against my mum...it...it was more like, uh, to avoid betrothal without a say in the matter," Merida continued, "I never really thought about it more than that."</p><p>"Oh," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"I mean at least now I get to choose someone I like and not be forced to wed someone just because they hit a bloody target," Merida replied.</p><p>"But love is not a factor," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"It is," Merida replied, "it...it's just not the most important."</p><p>"You don't actually believe that do you," Hiccup asked. She gazed at him unamused.</p><p>"Oh come on," he scoffed, "how could love not be the most important thing, when you're choosing someone to marry?"</p><p>"I don't expect ye to understand," Merida replied, "it's different for you. I mean technically, I could choose for love if I wanted to now, but the problem is that whoever I choose my parents must approve of. Which, I guess wouldn't be too difficult; but because it also dictates who will have the throne then the Lords must approve as well."</p><p>"So," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"So...if I let my heart choose and they disapprove, then what? I'd have a choice to...to either abdicate my throne or...or let go of who I love. That would be an impossible choice, Hiccup. A choice that I'd rather not be faced with!" She huffed as she turned her eyes back to the path.</p><p>"So what," Hiccup replied, "you just give up on ever finding love?"</p><p>"This coming from the man who avoids love at all costs," she groaned.</p><p>"Yeah...well...that's different," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"How," she questioned skeptically.</p><p>"Well I made the choice to avoid it if I want to...I mean, I could change my mind about it too," Hiccup replied, "I'm certainly not going to just marry some random girl who I don't love just to...to avoid a difficult decision!" Merida sighed as she thought about it. Hiccup glanced at her again. He inadvertently grabbed her hand causing her to stop mid-step. He pulled her back to him and gazed into her blue eyes with a look of concern on his face. Her breath caught in her throat and her heart seemed to skip as she gazed back at him.</p><p>"Merida, if you choose someone you don't really love and marry them," Hiccup went on, "there would be no going back, no changing your mind, you'd be stuck with him, and you'd be miserable." Merida gazed up at him for a long moment before averting her eyes. She knew Hiccup was right. Though she'd never admit it, she was afraid to allow her heart to choose. Though she had the freedom to choose for love, she still felt bound to her crown. She still felt obligated to her kingdom to make a wise choice for the person who would end up sharing her throne, rather than one of the heart. She tried not to dwell on it too much and tried to avoid the subject as much as possible. But regardless her heart still yearned for more than she thought she could have.</p><p>Hiccup let go of her hand but continued to gaze at her. Though, he knew he may have overstepped a bit in their conversation he couldn't help it. Merida was an amazing girl, the most amazing girl he'd ever met, in fact. She was smart, beautiful, and kind. She was easy to talk to and fun to be around. She was someone he could easily see himself falling for. He could not understand why someone as special and unique as her could be so willing to give up on love completely before ever even experiencing it, all for the sake of her throne.</p><p>Maybe it was all in his head but he simply couldn't deny their chemistry. He couldn't deny the feelings he seemed to be having for her from the moment they met, despite his aversion to love. From their banter that at times felt more like flirting, to her seemingly heartfelt words of advice, she seemed to have stirred in Hiccup feelings that he hadn't felt in so long; feelings he had practically given up on.</p><p>She was special, no question, far too special, in his opinion, to waste away in some sham of a marriage because of her people's archaic traditions. Maybe his reasons for telling her so were slightly selfish; but even if he had no chance at all, he didn't think that she should be trapped in some loveless marriage for the rest of her life. Though he'd known her only two days, he knew she deserved far more than that.</p><p>"I'm sorry," he replied, "I know it...it's none of my business, but it just doesn't seem fair. I mean, you fought to get the freedom to choose for yourself and...and now your just going to waste your choice on some guy the Lords approve of?"</p><p>"It is what it is, Hiccup" Merida replied as she turned and continued walking, "being a leader means you make sacrifices for yer people. I'm sure ye of all people can understand that at least. I care about my people too much to abdicate my throne, and I don't want to be faced with an impossible choice!"</p><p>"With all due respect princess," Hiccup replied as he followed behind her, "that just sounds like a load of bull shit."</p><p>"Excuse me," she replied indignantly as she turned and glared up at him.</p><p>"It sounds to me like you're just as afraid of love as I am," Hiccup smirked at her as he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Oh please," Merida scoffed, "I am not." He just gazed at her disbelievingly.</p><p>"I'm not afraid Hiccup," Merida replied in frustration.</p><p>"Yes, you are," he replied, "you're afraid that if you find love it will end in heartbreak because of the stipulations of your throne. So out of fear you're not even allowing yourself the chance to find love at all." Merida sighed heavily as she turned her eyes back to the path ahead.</p><p>"You're ridiculous," she replied.</p><p>"Well...you're a hypocrite," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"I am not," Merida snapped.</p><p>"Oh No," Hiccup replied, "didn't you just tell me that I shouldn't let my fear stop me from finding love again...that I...I should open my heart to the possibility."</p><p>"Aye, so, what's yer point," Merida asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.</p><p>"So, why would you tell me that," Hiccup questioned, "when you, yourself are avoiding love out of fear?" Merida huffed in frustration.</p><p>"Well it doesn't seem like something that would be easy to find anyway," she replied in aggravation, "not for me."</p><p>"How so," he questioned skeptically.</p><p>"I don't know," she groaned, "I...I guess, well, I...I don't know, I mean..." She sighed heavily before continuing as she tried desperately to gather her thoughts.</p><p>"Most people see me for what I am," she replied in frustration, "not who I am! All they see is...is Princess Merida, daughter of the king, future queen of Scots and they act accordingly. I mean, I...I've never even had a real friend before, let alone someone who knows me well enough to love me for me and not just my bloody title!"</p><p>"Well that sounds really," Hiccup paused.</p><p>"Lonely," he and Merida said in unison. They glanced at each other briefly.</p><p>"I...I try not to think about it much," Merida shrugged, "in fact I...I've never even really told anyone how I felt about it before." Hiccup remained quiet as he listened.</p><p>"No one I've ever met has ever just been real with me. They all just tell me what they think I want to hear. I...I can't stand it sometimes. It's enough to...to make me just want to give up!" Merida turned to face him once again.</p><p>"If I were to give my heart, it'd be my whole heart Hiccup," she continued as she placed her hand over her heart, "and I'd expect nothing less in return. I'd want the person I give my heart to, to want me for me. No man that's ever come around wants me, they all just want the throne. So no, I...I don't really believe that the kind of love I want is really out there for me." Merida glanced up at him. Hiccup gazed at her for a long moment, feeling an aching in his heart as she voiced her misgivings when it came to love. Despite his own misgivings he felt the need to prove to her that love was real and that she deserved it just as much as anyone else.</p><p>"But you do think about it," Hiccup questioned softly, "what you would want out of love?"</p><p>"Sometimes, I do," Merida replied as she glanced at him.</p><p>"What exactly do you think about," Hiccup asked curiously. She turned her eyes back to the trail as she thought of what to say.</p><p>"Well, I think sometimes that if I did choose for love, that I would want someone who really sees me, and cares about me, the real me. I'd want someone I could talk to and share things with, and someone who's not afraid to tell me when I'm wrong. I'd want someone who's not afraid to disagree with me, or tell me I'm being unreasonable. I...I want someone that I could just be myself with, who would accept me as I am and wouldn't try to change me. I'd want someone who cares to hear my opinion on things and doesn't just dismiss me. I would want someone who truly loves me for who I am in here," she pointed to her heart.</p><p>Hiccup smiled warmly in her direction. For someone who claimed to not believe love was something in her fate, she had given it much thought. He stopped walking and gently grabbed her hand once more. She turned to him curiously. He gazed into her sky blue eyes and smiled slightly. Merida's breath caught in her throat as she gazed back at him.</p><p>"Well if that's how you feel," Hiccup questioned, "if that's something you really want, then why on earth would you be so willing to...to give up the hope of ever finding that; to not even allow yourself the possibility?"</p><p>"Why won't you," she questioned. Hiccup sighed heavily as he released her hand.</p><p>"You're right, ya know," Hiccup replied with a shrug, "I'm a hypocrite and a cynic and a coward when it comes to love, but at least I experienced it once. And even though it didn't last, it was still worth it." Hiccup gazed at her for a long moment. She dropped her eyes to the ground seemingly in deep thought.</p><p>"Look I get it," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean it's not easy when people see you a certain way and expect you to be a certain way, and they don't really give you the chance to be who you truly are. Or worse, they judge you for being true to yourself." Merida stayed silent as she pondered his words.</p><p>"I know what it's like to not be truly seen, Merida," he went on, "I mean when I was younger I didn't really have any friends, like at all." Hiccup shrugged, "I was an outcast and a screw up and pretty much rejected by most of my peers. So, loneliness and I, we go way back." She smiled in sympathy.</p><p>"But I always wanted someone to get me, I guess," Hiccup continued, "to see me for me for what I could do, not just dismiss me because I was a runt and just a terribly accident prone Viking, who may...or...may not have burned the village down a couple times."</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida laughed as she looked up at him.</p><p>"I'm joking...I'm joking," he replied, "it was only the once...and it's wasn't even my fault really...it was an accident."</p><p>"Oh I'd like to hear that story," Merida replied with a chuckle.</p><p>"Yeah well...one of these days," Hiccup chuckled, "maybe." Hiccup paused a moment as he gazed in her direction.</p><p>"I do get it though," Hiccup replied. Merida smiled up at him as she gazed at him for a long moment.</p><p>"Look," Hiccup replied, "all I'm trying to say is, even though it could potentially end badly, love is still worth the risk. Even though Astrid and I ended as we did, even though I got my heart broken, it was all still worth it...to me at least. I mean, in my opinion, I'd much rather experience love even if it ends badly than to...to never experience it at all."</p><p>"Well, ye didn't know when ye fell for Astrid that it'd end as it did Hiccup," Merida replied.</p><p>"Yeah so," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Well I know that if I fall in love it will end that way because of what I am and what I'm meant to be," Merida replied, "so why even try if heartbreak is inevitable?"</p><p>"No, you don't know that," Hiccup replied, "you're just assuming the worst case scenario. For all you know the person you fall in love with could be accepted by your entire kingdom. I mean, wouldn't that be better then just settling for someone because you're afraid of the outcome?" Merida huffed in frustration. She turned her eyes back to the trail ahead of them.</p><p>"The problem is you'll never know if you never take a chance," Hiccup went on. He gazed at her for a long moment. He could feel his heart racing, as well as his thoughts. There were so many things he longed to say to her. He paused a moment as he placed a hand on her cheek and gently turned her head to face him again. She kept her eyes averted in an attempt to avoid his intense gaze.</p><p>"Merida look at me," he said softly. She reluctantly turned her eyes and gazed up at him in uncertainty. He gazed back into her sparkling blue eyes for a long moment, seemingly at a loss for words.</p><p>"You're an amazing person Merida," Hiccup said, "I mean, you're beautiful, your witty, smart, fearless and...just...amazing with that bow of your's." He chuckled under his breath. Merida continued to gaze up at him as a blush arose on her cheeks. Hiccup leaned a little closer to her as he continued to look into her eyes.</p><p>"Everything you just said, everything you want in a relationship...you deserve to have all of it. You deserve to be happy," he said firmly, "and you're crazy if you think that there is no one in this world that could see past your title to who you are in here." He pointed to her heart.</p><p>"Believe me, you are any guy's dream! I mean I've known you, what, a day," Hiccup went on, "and I can already see how amazing you are." Merida blushed slightly at his words as she gazed up at him. He dropped his hand from her face, but continued to gaze at her.</p><p>"All I'm trying to say is there is more to life then just being queen. You shouldn't have to choose between leading your people and being happy," Hiccup went on, "and, I mean, so what if the Lords don't approve, I'm sure there would be a way around that, even if you have to fight for it. Isn't love worth fighting for?" He smirked in her direction. Merida looked up at him and smiled slightly.</p><p>"Ye know, for someone as cynical about love as ye are," she replied, "ye certainly are passionate about it." He shook his head and chuckled slightly.</p><p>"What can I say," he shrugged, "I'm secretly a romantic...just don't tell anyone it may tarnish my Viking reputation." Merida chuckled.</p><p>"Besides," Hiccup sighed, "what kind of friend would I be if I didn't give you the same advice you gave me." He gazed at her a few moments longer then he probably should have with a warm, genuine smile on his face. She blushed under the weight of his gaze. It was the first time she'd ever felt like someone truly saw her, and understood how she felt. She smiled back at him.</p><p>"So basically what yer saying is we should both be following our own advice then," Merida replied as she smirked up at him.</p><p>"Basically," Hiccup grinned.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "just fur ye mak' a good point, what's to halt ye from goin back to yer old love avoiding ways then?" She raised an eyebrow at him questioningly.</p><p>"Well...how about this," Hiccup replied, "I promise to take a chance on finding love again, if you promise to take a chance on love as well." Merida continued to smirk up at him.</p><p>"Alright then," she replied, "I guess that sounds fair, but I'll have ye know that I'll not let ye go back on yer word."</p><p>"Fair enough princess," Hiccup chuckled, "and as your first real friend I promise to hold you to your's."</p><p>"Real friend huh," she smiled.</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied as he smiled back at her.</p><p>"Well, yer nothing if not persistent Viking," Merida replied, "I'll give ye that." She turned and began to follow the trail of wisps once more.</p><p>"Please, the very definition of a Viking is stubbornness to a fault, princess," Hiccup grinned as he followed after her.</p><p>"Aye, are ye entirely certain that ye don't have a Scot in yer line somewhere," Merida smirked as she glanced back at him, "stubbornness is our main trait."</p><p>"Well I guess anything is possible," Hiccup replied with a shrug, "of course there could have just as easily been a Viking somewhere in your's." Merida laughed out loud as she continued walking.</p><p>"So do we have a deal then," Hiccup asked. Merida stopped and turned to face him.</p><p>"I'd say so," Merida replied. Hiccup grinned at her.</p><p>"Okay then," he grinned as he held his hand out to her. She smiled up at him as she took his hand and shook it.</p><p>"Here's to being open to the possibility," Hiccup grinned.</p><p>"And ye have faith this will go well, do ye," Merida questioned as she raised an eyebrow at him.</p><p>"Only time will tell princess," he smirked, "but I have a pretty good feeling that we both might just find exactly what we've been looking for."</p><p>"Oh ye do, do ye," Merida smirked. Hiccup smiled as a slight blush arose on his cheeks.</p><p>"Most definitely," he replied.</p><p>The murmuring of the wisp suddenly became a little louder and more insistent causing them both to look up. There before them were the very standing stones that Hiccup had only seen in his dream. Hiccup gazed up in amazement. They were much larger then he'd imagined they'd be and far more impressive.</p><p>"Pretty amazing, huh," Merida replied as she crossed her arms over her chest. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"I'm still trying to figure out what all this means," he replied as he gazed up at the massive stones. They followed the wisps to the center of the ring. Hiccup walked the parameter of the circle as he gazed up at the tall stones. He ran his fingers over the detailed carvings in the stones, many of which reminded him of the ancient Viking runes.</p><p>As Merida walked further into the center of the ring she noticed a wisp hovering by one of the larger stones. She slowly headed in its direction. Just as she reached that particular stone, the wisp vanished and in the very place it had been she noticed a symbol that looked very much like those of her pendent but combined. Around it was carved some words written in a language that she didn't recognize. It was a wonder to her that in all the times she had been there she had never noticed these particular carvings before.</p><p>"Hiccup," she called out as she glanced over her shoulder, "come look at this!" Hiccup jogged over to where she was and looked where she had pointed. He crouched down before the stone and examined the carvings more closely .</p><p>"The wisp lead me straight to this spot," Merida said, "it's strange though; I've been here many times...I can't remember ever being drawn to this particular carving before." Hiccup gazed up at her in intrigue. He turned his attention back to the stone.</p><p>"Do ye know this language," she asked.</p><p>"It sorta looks like old Norse," Hiccup replied as he glanced up at her again, "but these two symbols carved as one is interesting, I wonder if it's some sort of a...a Viking binding spell."</p><p>"A viking binding spell," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Vikings used to use runes for spells," Hiccup replied, "they believed you could combine certain runes together to use magic to gain things like, protection, bravery, wisdom or even help with way-finding. But Viking binding spells are an old practice. As far as I know, it hasn't been done in hundreds of years."</p><p>"But this is a rune combined with a Celtic symbol," Merida replied, "what exactly do ye think they were trying to gain?" Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"I'm not sure exactly," he replied, "I mean, I always thought it was all just superstition."</p><p>"What about the inscription," Merida questioned, "Ye said it's old Norse; do ye know what it says?"</p><p>"Well, I'm not so good at reading Old Norse," Hiccup replied, "but I can try." Hiccup pulled out his notebook and began sketching the symbol and words, as Merida watched curiously. Hiccup glanced up at her.</p><p>"I just want to record it so I can ask Fishlegs about it later in case I mis-translate," he replied.</p><p>"Fishlegs," Merida questioned in confusion.</p><p>Hiccup chuckled, "my friend back home, he's really good at this stuff." He glanced up at her briefly, "I told you, Vikings have terrible names...it's tradition."</p><p>"It's tradition for vikings to have terrible names," she questioned skeptically.</p><p>"Yeah," he shrugged nonchalantly, "having a terrible name is supposed to ward off trolls and curses."</p><p>"Really," Merida replied as she gazed at him incredulously. He glanced up at her with a smirk.</p><p>"You think I'd make that up," he replied sarcastically, "my name is Hiccup for crying out loud!"</p><p>"You really believe having a terrible name can ward off trolls and curses," she questioned.</p><p>"Says the girl who follows magical lights into the forrest, and used a spell to turn her mother into a bear," he replied in amusement.</p><p>"Have you ever seen a troll," she questioned.</p><p>"No," Hiccup smirked, "I guess my name is terrible enough that they stay miles away." Merida chuckled slightly as Hiccup turned back to his sketch.</p><p>He finished his sketch and closed the book.</p><p>"Okay," he sighed as he studied the words, "Souls be bound...lovers true...fate be linked...two hearts now one." He looked up at her with a curious expression on his face.</p><p>"Well, it certainly sounds like a spell," Merida replied as she crossed her arms over her chest. Hiccup turned back to the stone and reached out to gently touch the carvings. As he traced the crude lines with his fingers, his mind flashed briefly to the scenes from his most recent dream. He saw the strange man carving something with his dagger, the man cutting a braid from his head, and the couple exchanging lockets. He remained quiet for a long few moments as he contemplated the visions that flashed through his mind.</p><p>"Some sort of ritual," he muttered to himself. He stood slowly and turned to Merida.</p><p>"Ritual," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Do you remember earlier when I said that my dream was the same every night until I got here," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied curiously.</p><p>"Well, the dream I had last night was different," he replied, "I sorta forgot about it til just now. I was here at the standing stones but it was strange, I...I kept seeing different scenes. There was a man carving something into one of the stones, then I saw him cut a braid of hair from his head, then I saw him give the pendant to a woman and she gave him another. Neither of them acknowledged me, it was almost like watching some sort of a...a memory I guess. I couldn't make sense of it, but I think that maybe these scenes I saw were like glimpses of some sort of a ritual."</p><p>"A ritual to do what exactly," Merida questioned. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"I don't know," he paused a moment as he thought about it.</p><p>"Well, we do know for certain that Mairead and Hiccup the First did not end up together," Hiccup replied, "maybe they knew their time together was coming to an end, maybe they got desperate."</p><p>Aye," Merida replied, "I know she loved him, that much is true...but she wasn't exactly free to do so."</p><p>"What do you mean," Hiccup looked at her curiously.</p><p>"When they met," Merida went on, "Mairead was already betrothed to my great great grand-da. I'm sure her and yer grandfather's affair would have been a scandal."</p><p>"So they were definitely being forced apart then," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "that's not all, "My father also told me that my great great, great, grand-da, Mairead's father, called upon yer clan to help DunBroch hunt the dragons that plagued our land at the time. That's why they came to DunBroch in the first place. Our clans apparently were allies for many years prior but at some point there was a misunderstanding between the king and the chief and it resulted in the Berkan Vikings being banned from ever returning." Hiccup looked to her in surprise.</p><p>"We were banished from DunBroch," he questioned. Merida nodded. Hiccup pondered this new detail.</p><p>"Why," Hiccup asked, "what was the disagreement about?" Merida shrugged.</p><p>"Nobody really knows," Merida replied, "not even my Dad could find the answer, but Id wager that it had something to do with our grandparents affair."</p><p>"Then it makes sense," he replied, "if they were being forced apart like that, then they must have tried to cast some sort of a...a binding spell to keep that from happening...maybe...they were trying to change their fate too." Hiccup turned to face her.</p><p>"So...ye think this ritual that ye saw was a part of some kind of a...a spell to keep that from happening," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Maybe," he replied.</p><p>"But if that's true," Merida questioned, "then what happened? They still wound up apart. I mean, did the spell not work?"</p><p>"That I don't know," Hiccup replied thoughtfully, "but then I don't really know all that much about magic to begin with. I mean, like I said, it's an old practice." Merida gazed ahead of them as she thought everything over.</p><p>"Hiccup, do ye think this could be why we're being led by the wisps," Merida questioned.</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup replied, "I mean, I guess it's possible...but if that's true, why us...why now...it's been nearly 300 years since this spell would've been cast? I mean why wait three generations to reach out to us now?"</p><p>"Aye, ye have a point," Merida replied. She fell silent as she thought about it.</p><p>"What if it is something about us, in particular" Merida questioned. Hiccup looked up at her in intrigue.</p><p>"Maybe there is something specifically about ye and I," Merida went on, "something that connects us to them better than any of their other descendants."</p><p>"Like what exactly," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"I don't know," Merida shrugged, "I mean, ye said before this all started happening to us both around the same time."</p><p>"True," Hiccup agreed. He tried to think of what they both could have inadvertently done to trigger all of this. Merida fell silent as she thought about it as well. She turned to face him suddenly as a thought occurred to her.</p><p>"What about the pendants," Merida questioned. Hiccup looked curiously at her once more.</p><p>"It just, it seems to have started after my Dad gave it to me," Merida replied.</p><p>"The pendants are technically the only real physical connection we have to our great great grandparents," Hiccup replied, "but they've also been passed down three generations. So it still begs the question...why us?"</p><p>"Well...," Merida replied thoughtfully, "technically I'm only the first of my family to actually wear the pendant. After nana left it to my father, he locked it away. It hasn't actually been worn by anyone since my Dad was just a wee lad."</p><p>"That's an interesting thought," Hiccup replied, "I mean, come to think of it, my grandfather's pendant has been passed down to each of my predecessors but none of them has ever actually worn it, they each had given it to their true love as a betrothal gift. So...technically I'm the first of my great great grandfather's descendants to actually wear it." They gazed at each other curiously for a long moment.</p><p>"If it was a spell," Merida went on, "maybe the pendants are some kind of talisman or something. Or...or maybe they used some sort of blood magic on the pendants."</p><p>"Blood magic," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye, I read about it once," Merida replied, "it was a story of a witch that cast a curse that could only be undone by herself or by a blood descendant." Hiccup gazed at her in curiosity.</p><p>"I mean, think about it," Merida went on, "it was only after my Dad gave me the pendant that the wisps lead me to the journal and around the same time ye say yer dreams began. Not to mention ye saw both the pendants used in some sort of ritual in yer most recent dream."</p><p>"So you think that the pendants themselves have some sort of magic attached to them," Hiccup questioned, "and because we are the direct descendants of Mairead and Hiccup the first, that somehow us having them is what started all of this?"</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "I mean, it sorta makes sense doesn't it? I mean, maybe the pendants finally being worn by both of us was what sparked the magic from the spell."</p><p>"It certainly sounds plausible," Hiccup replied, "but it still doesn't answer why...I mean, what was the purpose of the spell to begin with. What were they actually trying to accomplish? And what exactly is supposed to be our part in all of this? I mean, what exactly is the magic calling us to do?"</p><p>"Aye, it all still doesn't quite add up does it," Merida replied, "I mean, if it was a spell to stay together, clearly that didn't work. But what else would they have been trying to do with such a spell?" Hiccup furrowed his brow as he thought about everything Merida suggested.</p><p>"Maybe something went wrong," Hiccup replied somberly, "maybe the spell backfired somehow, or...or they did something wrong."</p><p>"Perhaps," Merida replied as she thought it all over, "it's possible they didn't know the consequences of using such magic, maybe they didn't quite realize what they were getting themselves into...like when I used the spell that changed my mum." Hiccup nodded in agreement.</p><p>"Maybe the magic from the spell is leading us to find the truth," Merida replied, "the truth about what really happened. Maybe we're supposed to...to find out what went amiss and...and set it right again somehow." Hiccup gazed at her in intrigue as he pondered her words. He sighed heavily as he looked at her.</p><p>"It feels like everything we find out only leads to ten times more questions than we had before," Hiccup replied in frustration.</p><p>"I know," Merida replied, "but it does seem like we are onto something, at the very least we may be closer to the answers we seek."</p><p>"Yeah but how are we supposed to find out about this spell," Hiccup questioned, "like I said before, I don't have all that much knowledge about magic or...or spells or anything like that...do you?"</p><p>"Not really...no," Merida admitted, "Just from what little I read in stories, which isn't much. I...I've only personally used a spell once and...well...ye know how that turned out."</p><p>"Well, unless we can find someone who knows more about magic," Hiccup replied, "I don't see how we can find out the truth." Merida pondered his words.</p><p>"Well, I may not know much about magic," Merida replied, "but maybe I know where we could find some answers."</p><p>"The witch," Hiccup questioned hesitantly. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Maybe she could tell us something more about the spell itself that could help us understand what our grandparents were up to," Merida replied, "or why the spell's magic seems to be leading us. Or...or what, if anything, could have gone amiss."</p><p>"I guess it's worth a shot," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Her cottage is close to here," Merida replied, "of course, the wisps led me there before so I don't know exactly where, but I'm sure if we keep walking..."</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup interrupted, "hold on a minute." She looked up at him curiously.</p><p>"We've been walking for hours following the wisps," he replied, "I think we should call it a day, don't you? I mean, we can come back tomorrow with Toothless. Maybe the wisps will come back to show us the way. Besides it's getting late, I don't want you to miss your curfew."</p><p>"Yer right," Merida replied as she shook her head, "sorry, I...I'm just really anxious to figure this all out."</p><p>"Me too," he chuckled, "but we have plenty of time. I mean, I'm not going anywhere...at least not until we figure this out anyway." Merida nodded.</p><p>"Okay then," Merida smiled.</p><p>"Besides," he smiled, "this gives me the prefect excuse to see you again tomorrow." Merida chuckled as she gazed up at him.</p><p>"Ye know Hiccup," she replied with a smile, "ye don't really need an excuse. I like spending time with ye." Hiccup smiled back at her.</p><p>"You do huh," Hiccup replied with a grin.</p><p>"Of course," Merida grinned back, "yer funny, smart, easy to talk to, and...and yer not afraid to tell me like it is. Like ye said before, yer my first real friend." Hiccup smiled warmly at her.</p><p>"Ya know, as strange as this all has been," he replied, "I'm really kinda glad that the spirits of our grandparents waited so long to reach out to us specifically." Merida furrowed her brow at him. Hiccup glanced at her in slight amusement.</p><p>"Because we wouldn't have met otherwise," he explained, "and I...I'm really glad that we met."</p><p>"Really," she asked.</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied with a grin, "ya know, I meant what I said earlier. You're amazing and I like spending time with you too." Merida smiled warmly up at him. He gazed in her direction for a long moment.</p><p>"It...it's...uh...sort of a...a little more than that though," he continued as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck, "I...I feel like you just...see me, ya know, the real me. I...I mean, I don't have to pretend with you, ya know, it's...it's just easy to be myself and I just feel like...like I could just tell you everything and anything." He chuckled slightly as he continued to gaze at her.</p><p>"It's kind of crazy actually when you think about it, I...I mean...I know we just met and all, but it sorta feels almost like we've known each other a lot longer." He gazed at her once again. She smiled slightly as she looked up at him nervously. He paused a moment as he reached for her hand once more. He smiled warmly in her direction as he gently grasped her hand in his. She smiled warmly in return.</p><p>"I know I said this before, but, I...I really do like you," he went on as he continued to rub the back of his neck nervously, "and I...I'm really glad we're friends."</p><p>"Me too," she replied with a smile.</p><p>...</p><p>As they began the long walk back to Hiccup's camp, Merida fell quiet as she mentally went over everything they had discovered at the standing stones. Noticing her quietness, Hiccup gazed at her for a long moment, curious as to what was going through her mind.</p><p>"You okay," he asked in a concerned tone.</p><p>"Yeah," Merida replied distractedly, "I...I was just thinking, is all."</p><p>"About what exactly," Hiccup questioned. She glanced up at him.</p><p>"Just about our grandparent's situation," Merida replied, "I mean, it must have been so hard for them. They found each other and fell in love only to be forced apart. And what's worse, she was forced to marry someone she didn't even love at all. It's...it's...exactly what I fear Hiccup." Hiccup nodded in understanding as he listened.</p><p>"Not only that but I could have just as easily been in the same predicament as my great great nana," Merida said, "I mean, if my mum didn't change her mind, I'd have been betrothed when ye and I met, and most likely on the cusp of marriage."</p><p>"What," Hiccup chuckled," are you not allowed to have an adorable well-mannered Viking as a friend when you're betrothed?" He raised an eyebrow at her and shot her a crooked grin.</p><p>"No," she smirked at him, "I don't believe my betrothed would have taken too kindly to my being friends with a Viking, particularly an adorable, well mannered one." Hiccup smirked.</p><p>"In fact," Merida went on, "he'd probably be insanely jealous. Ye know, Scotsmen don't exactly handle competition well."</p><p>"Competition huh," Hiccup smirked.</p><p>"He'd probably challenge ye to a duel or worse just throw ye in the dungeon for trying to steal the princess away from him." Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Then I'd have to rescue ye," Merida went on, "in some daring escape, where I single-handedly take out all the guards, then we would barely make it to Toothless and then fly far away to some place where I don't have to be a princess anymore and I can live as I please."</p><p>"Hey is this my rescue or yours ," Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Maybe it's a little o' both," Merida smirked, "ye rescue me from being a princess, I rescue ye from being hanged."</p><p>"Sounds like a win win to me," Hiccup shrugged, "you get your freedom, I get to stay alive.</p><p>"Aye," Merida chuckled, "it all works out right." Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Well it's good to know that if things get dicey," Hiccup replied, "not only have you thought out our escape plan, but also that you'd have my back." Merida chuckled slightly as she turned her attention back to the trail before them.</p><p>Hiccup turned and gazed at her for a long moment. Though there was a smile on her face, he could see a distant look in her eye. It was a look of both longing and discontent."</p><p>"Well I have only one thing to say to all of that," Hiccup smiled.</p><p>"Aye, what's that," Merida asked with a grin.</p><p>"It's a good thing you're not betrothed," Hiccup smirked. Merida shook her head as she grinned at him.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "I still have my freedom...for now anyway."</p><p>"You don't exactly sound like you're putting much faith in that," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"It's not that I don't have faith," Merida replied, "I just, I know that the Lords will fight me on it and they'll be far more difficult to convince than ye know. In fact, I'm fairly certain the reason for Lord Dingwall's visit has to do with me and the fact that I'm dragging my heels as it is, so to speak."</p><p>"Do you think the Lords will try to challenge your parents decision," Hiccup asked in concern.</p><p>"It's definitely a possibility," Merida replied solemnly. Hiccup gazed at her, quietly pondering her words.</p><p>"I know my parents will stand by their decision as long as possible," Merida went on, "but if the Lords were to escalate the situation, they may try to force my father's hand."</p><p>"Well, I think maybe you should introduce me to your parents soon then," Hiccup smiled, "that way we could come up with a new alliance." Merida looked to him in confusion.</p><p>"And that will help my situation with the Lords how exactly," she questioned. Hiccup smiled.</p><p>"Well, then Dunbroch would have me and my dragon riders at their disposal and if the Lords were to try to start something I would gladly fight for you." Merida blushed slightly.</p><p>"Ye'd do all that," she replied, "just so I'd still have my freedom to choose as I wish."</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied matter-of-factly. Merida gazed up at him in surprise. Hiccup chuckled slightly.</p><p>"Don't act so surprised princess," Hiccup replied as he raised an eyebrow at her, "you're worth fighting for, ya know." She continued to gaze up at him, with a warm genuine smile on her face, but seemingly at a loss for words.</p><p>"What," he smiled.</p><p>"Nothing...I'm just," she paused a moment as she tried to put her feelings into words, "yer a really good person Hiccup, and I...I'm really glad that I have a friend like ye." Hiccup smiled back at her.</p><p>"Likewise princess," he smirked.</p><p>"Ye know, there is just one small discrepancy with that plan o' yer's though," she smirked.</p><p>"What's that," Hiccup questioned as he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Yer a Viking from Berk," Merida replied, "technically, yer still banished from Dunbroch. So if we were to propose a new alliance, we'd have to first convince my parents to lift the decree of banishment."</p><p>"What, the nearly 300 year old decree of banishment," Hiccup replied dismissively, "somehow I doubt it will be too big an issue. I mean the people who it was written for and the people who wrote it have been gone a pretty long time."</p><p>"Aye, tis true," Merida replied, "but convincing my mother that Vikings can be trusted is going to be a feat in itself."</p><p>"Great," Hiccup replied flatly, "first the Lords, then this stale decree of banishment, and now your mother too." He shook his head in disbelief.</p><p>"What else could possibly be stacked against me," Hiccup lamented. Merida chuckled.</p><p>"Well none of it will be easy that's for sure," Merida replied, but I'm sure we will come up with something to convince her. I mean, yer not exactly the type of Viking she always warned me about."</p><p>"What do you mean by that exactly," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Oh, my mother, sorta has this thing about Vikings," Merida replied.</p><p>"A thing," Hiccup questioned, "what sorta thing?"</p><p>"Like...uh...a...a deep distrust and near hatred of them," Merida replied regretfully. Hiccup raised his eyebrows as he gazed at her in realization.</p><p>"Oh is that all," Hiccup replied flatly.</p><p>"I'm sorry," Merida replied, "I just..."</p><p>"No...don't apologize," Hiccup interrupted, "it's okay. I'm not offended. I told you before, I'm well aware of what the world thinks of Vikings, and with good reason. I'm sure your mom has a good reason and she has every right to feel as she does." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye.</p><p>"Sorta explains a lot actually," he said.</p><p>"Like what," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Well, like why you were so eager to kill me when you found out I was a Viking," Hiccup chuckled. Merida rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Something tells me yer never going to let me forget that," Merida replied as she rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Of course not," Hiccup smiled, "it's too good a story!" Merida groaned.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. External Obstacles Arise</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 12</p><p>...</p><p>Dunbroch</p><p>Fergus sat across from Lord Dingwall in the meeting hall awaiting the Queen's arrival so that they could get down to the business of why Lord Dingwall had come to visit Dunbroch in the first place. As the men patiently awaited Elinor's arrival they had fallen into a heated discussion about the mysterious and quite elusive dragon that Lord Dingwall claimed to have spotted on several occasions, the most recent being a few days prior flying around the top of the Fire Falls.</p><p>"I'm tellin' ye Fergus," Lord dingwall continued, "that beast has it in fur me, he followed me from mah land tae yers!" Fergus chuckled slightly in spite of himself.</p><p>"Aye, ah know, ah know," Fergus replied dismissively as he took a swig of ale.</p><p>"It's true, ah tell ye," Lord Dingwall insisted, "he's black as night 'n' bigger then a horse, wi' demon wings!"</p><p>"Aye, are ye sure ye haven't juist mistaken something fur it," Fergus questioned, "or mibbie ye had some ill hagus that didn't gree wi' ye?" Lord Dingwall glared at Fergus indignantly.</p><p>"Are ye gonnae blame haggis whin th' beast finally mak's a meal o' me," Lord Dingwall slammed his fist on the table in frustration as he spoke.</p><p>"Naw much o' a meal if you ask me," Fergus replied.</p><p>"Now see here," Dingwall began.</p><p>"Gentlemen, please," Elinor's firm voice bellowed into the hall interrupting their argument and causing both men to turn to her simultaneously. They both quickly stood as she made her way into the hall and over to the table. Fergus pulled the chair out for her and Elinor sat down. The two men then took their seats as well.</p><p>"What is all this shouting," she asked, "yer behaving like children."</p><p>"Aye, Ah am sorry yer majesty," Lord Dingwall replied apologetically, "Ah shouldnae have raised mah voice. His majesty and Ah was just discussing the dragon sighting.</p><p>"Ah am sorry as well dear," Fergus replied as he grinned sheepishly at his wife.</p><p>"Apology accepted," she replied regally, "now should we get on to the business o' why yer here Lord Dingwall."</p><p>"Aye," Lord Dingwall replied, "but shouldn't we wait for the princess to arrive?"</p><p>"Oh," Elinor replied, "I'm sorry Lord Dingwall, Merida won't be joining us, I didnae know ye required her presence. She had no lessons today so I let her go riding, I'm afraid she won't be back til dusk at least."</p><p>"This pertains to Merida then," Fergus questioned curiously.</p><p>"Aye," Lord Dingwall replied, "and her future marriage, or lack thereof." Both Fergus and Elinor glanced at each other with a look of concern.</p><p>"Now Lord Dingwall," Fergus replied, "ye know our decision."</p><p>"Aye, Ah know," Lord Dingwall replied dismissively, "yer allowing her to choose a husband for herself rather then the tradition of the Dunbroch games."</p><p>"With all due respect Dingwall," Fergus replied, "ye all agreed to this decision."</p><p>"Aye," Lord Dingwall replied, "five years ago we agreed, but yer daughter is now at the marrying age and still has yet to choose. Each of our sons have each called on her many times over these past years in hopes to win her heart before her hand. But she doesn't even give 'em the time o' day!" Elinor sighed as Lord Dingwall spoke.</p><p>"Now, I and the other lords have spoken about it and we are all concerned that the time is fast approaching that she should be wed, that the future of Dunbroch should be settled." Fergus leaned forward and ran his hand over his beard as he listened.</p><p>"Not only that," Dingwall went on, "but there is also concern that who she pick not be worthy of the throne. At this moment she's free to choose anyone. But we worry who that will be. I mean, what if she chooses a...a commoner or worse someone who's not even a Scot!"</p><p>"Lord Dingwall," Elinor replied, "with all due respect, my daughter has always been an excellent judge of character, I know whoever she choose would be worthy of her hand."</p><p>"But would he be worthy of the crown," Dingwall questioned, "there are many good men in the world, not all are fit to rule!" Fergus glared at Lord Dingwall in annoyance.</p><p>"Merida is fit to rule Lord Dingwall," Fergus replied firmly, "who she marries should be inconsequential."</p><p>"It's true she will be the queen," Dingwall replied, "but who she marries may influence her rule. It would be best if who she choose have Dunbroch's interest at heart." Fergus huffed impatiently.</p><p>"What exactly is it yer suggesting Lord Dingwall," Fergus questioned with a hint of annoyance in his voice.</p><p>"We all think it best that she still choose one of our sons," Dingwall replied, "now, she would still be free to choose but from the three suitors offered. It will ensure that a Scot remain on the throne. Her husband will be a Scot, and her heirs will be Scots." Both Fergus and Elinor glanced at one another with a look of concern on there faces."</p><p>"And if she chooses none of them," Fergus questioned.</p><p>"Then we will have a decision to discuss," Dingwall replied, "but we'll cross that bridge if it comes to that, won't we."</p><p>...</p><p>Berk</p><p>Astrid paced back and forth in the meeting hall with an annoyed look on her face. It had been nearly a week since she had returned from her honeymoon and there was still no sign of Hiccup and she was beginning to worry. But she was just as angry as she was worried. Leave it to Hiccup to do something as stupid as flying off to some unknown place alone without even leaving any indication of where he had gone or how to find him. Eret sat in a chair at the table following her with his eyes, with a concerned expression on his face.</p><p>"Maybe you should sit down love," Eret said with genuine concern in his voice, "just calm down a bit and try not be so stressed." Astrid rolled her eyes as she continued to pace.</p><p>"Stressed," she chuckled sarcastically, "why would I be stressed."</p><p>"Astrid," Eret pleaded.</p><p>"You know this is just like him Eret," she continued to rant, "I mean, I really thought I got through to him at the wedding, I thought great now we can all finally move on...but no, of course not! I can't even have a moment to be happy before Hiccup pulls this stupid stunt!"</p><p>"Astrid please," Eret stood from his place and made his way over to her. He gently grabbed her arm to stop her from pacing and then he gently pulled her back to him. He gazed at her lovingly for a long moment.</p><p>"Look, I know you're worried," Eret replied, "but Hiccup is perfectly capable of taking care of himself...and he's not alone, he has Toothless."</p><p>"Yeah but it's been over a week, Eret," Astrid replied, "he never takes that long on a damn scouting mission. Anything could have happened! I mean, for all we know he could have been captured or...or worse! This is exactly why I tell him that doing scouting missions alone without any back-up whatsoever is stupid! But does he ever listen to me? No! Of course not!"</p><p>"Well then it's on him," Eret said in frustration, "he's the one who left without telling you, he's the one who went off without leaving so much as a map or...or even a hint of where he's gone!"</p><p>"That's not the point though Eret! I mean, he's the chief of Berk," Astrid replied, "if he's gotten himself into trouble we have to go after him, whether it's his own fault or not, there is no other choice."</p><p>"Of course," Eret replied, "I know that. Of course we will go after him, but you don't need to...you need to stop stressing about him and whatever he's gotten himself into and just focus on yourself right now Astrid." He came up beside her and placed a hand gently on her middle. He smiled warmly at her as he gazed lovingly into her sapphire eyes.</p><p>"You have more pressing things to worry about now," he said gently, "and getting this worked up is not good for you. Please just try to calm down a bit love."</p><p>Astrid sighed, "I know, I know, I'm sorry. I...I'm just, I'm so angry that he left like he did, and right now I guess I'm just a little over emotional. Eret pulled her into his arms and held her tightly against him."</p><p>"It's alright love," Eret replied reassuringly, "we'll find him...I promise." She nodded as she lay her head upon his chest. She closed her eyes for just a moment as she allowed the sound of his beating heart to soothe her troubled mind if only slightly. He gently ran is fingers over her long bond plaited hair as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head.</p><p>"I really thought when we came back it would be a fresh start for all of us," she replied.</p><p>"It is," Eret replied as he gently lifted her chin to once again gaze into her eyes, "this is just a small setback is all." The door to the meeting hall suddenly opened and Fishlegs walked in. The two looked over at him.</p><p>"Oh hey guys," Fishlegs said nervously, as he entered the room. He glanced back and forth between the two of them in uncertainty.</p><p>"Uh...uh...Astrid you uh...you w-wanted to see me?" She pulled away from Eret and made her way over to Fish with a look of determination on her face.</p><p>"You need to tell me where he's gone Fish," Astrid demanded. Fishleg's cowered under the weight of Astrid's glare.</p><p>"I...I t-told you Astrid," he stuttered, "Hiccup went on a scouting mission to that new island he found." Astrid rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Yeah, I know what you told me," Astrid huffed, "now I need you to tell me the truth!" She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Fishlegs. Fishlegs began to perspire slightly as she continued to glare at him. Eret smirked at Fish as he crossed his arms over his chest. Nothing amused him more than his wife's ability to put the fear of God in a man's heart to make him talk. He had first hand experience after all, having been on the other end of her interrogation tactics himself.</p><p>"Oh I'd start talking if I was you Fish," Eret said smugly, "she's the acting Chief right now and lying to the Chief is treason...you wouldn't want to be accused of treason now would you Fish?"</p><p>"No," Fishlegs answered quickly, "I...I would never lie to you...Astrid I...I swear I...I'm telling you the truth!"</p><p>"The truth Fishlegs," she questioned skeptically as she raised an eyebrow at him, "the whole truth?"</p><p>"That is the truth Astrid," Fishlegs insisted, "he went back to that island he found." Astrid continued to glare at him causing a wave of nervousness to sweep over him.</p><p>"O-Okay, look,"Fish replied, "it's a little more than a scouting mission...uh...Hiccup d-discovered some sort of a...a link between Berk and...and D-dunBroch."</p><p>"A link," Astrid questioned in sudden intrigue, "what sort of link?"</p><p>"Apparently h-his great great grandfather had a map of Dunbroch hidden somewhere," Fishlegs went on, "he...he went back to...to retrace his grandfather's steps, to find out what happened to him there, and find out why his grandfather felt the need to hide all the evidence of having been to DunBroch." Astrid silently pondered Fishleg's words.</p><p>"Dunbroch," she repeated as she committed the name to memory."</p><p>"Yeah," Fish replied, "that was the name of the place on his grandfather's map."</p><p>"Did he tell you at all where it was, or how to get there," she questioned. Fish shook his head.</p><p>"No...not really," he replied, "Hiccup only mentioned that the island was about three days South of Berk by...by dragon." Astrid nodded as she took in the information.</p><p>"And this map," Astrid replied, "I'm assuming he took it with him." Fishlegs nodded.</p><p>"He took all the maps of Dunbroch," Fishlegs replied, "he didn't want you or...or anyone else to go after him, he...he said he needed to do whatever he was doing alone." Astrid sighed heavily.</p><p>"But you saw the map," Astrid replied slyly as she gazed at him intently, "didn't you Fish."</p><p>"Well y-yeah," Fish replied, "I...I saw the map." Astrid just smirked at him.</p><p>"No...no...now hold on," Fishlegs stuttered. Astrid nodded her head insistently.</p><p>"We are going after him Fish," she replied, "and since you've seen the island on the map, you're coming with us!"</p><p>"B-but Astrid," Fish whined, "if...if Hiccup finds out I told you all of this he'll kill me!"</p><p>"Well if you don't help me find this island," she nearly growled, "then I will kill you!" Fishlegs nodded feverently in understanding.</p><p>"Got it Chief," Fish gulped.</p><p>"Now hold on love," Eret replied, "I don't think you should go. Fish and I can handle this."</p><p>"Why not," she questioned in frustration as she put her hands on her hips. Eret just gave her a look. Astrid rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Look," Eret replied, "we don't know anything about this Dunbroch place, we don't know if their hostile or not. Or weather or not they captured Hiccup. It's too dangerous..."</p><p>"Are you kidding me," Astrid scoffed, "Ive been in worse situations than this...I think I can handle it!"</p><p>"Not in this state you haven't," Eret replied in frustration. Astrid glared at him as she crossed her arms over her chest. Eret sighed heavily.</p><p>"Look, Astrid," Eret replied, "I know exactly what you're capable of, I know you could handle this, but we don't exactly know what we are walking into and I...and I'll not risk losing you or the..." Astrid covered Eret's mouth quickly before he said another word and gave him an annoyed look. As she removed her hand from his mouth, Eret chuckled in spite of himself.</p><p>"Alright, alright love, look, all I'm saying is that it'd be better if you stayed here, I mean for all we know Hiccup's on his way back already. This way if Hiccup gets back before we do, you'll be here to ream him out," Eret continued, "Fish and I can check out this Dunbroch place. Besides we can't leave Berk without someone in charge."</p><p>"Fine," Astrid groaned in annoyance. She rolled her eyes as she turned back to Fishlegs.</p><p>"Better start preparing for a long journey Fish," Astrid replied smugly, "You and Eret will leave in the morning." Suddenly the three Vikings were distracted by the meeting hall door creaking opened. They looked up to see Valka enter the room.</p><p>"Astrid," Valka gazed at the young woman intently as she entered the room, "we need to talk."</p><p>"Okay," Astrid replied, "I'm listening."</p><p>"Alone preferably," Valka replied as she eyed the two men. Both Eret and Fish shifted their gaze back to Astrid. Astrid nodded to them both. Fish headed toward the door but Eret lingered a little longer. He gazed at her questioningly.</p><p>"It's okay," she insisted as she gazed up at him, "you go...we will talk more about this later." Eret nodded as he leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek, he then quickly exited the room.</p><p>"Well," Valka sighed, "marriage certainly has agreed with you Astrid, you're positively glowing." Astrid averted her eyes as she smiled subtly, a slight bush formed over her cheeks. She quickly shook off the tiny show of emotion and gazed back at Valka with resolve."</p><p>"What do you need to talk to me about," she asked firmly. Valka nodded.</p><p>"Hiccup," she replied simply. Astrid nodded. She crossed her arms over her chest once more and sighed heavily as she sank down into one of the chairs at the table. Valka sat down across from her.</p><p>"I know you've been up in arms about him leaving since you got back," Valka said, "but there is no need to worry."</p><p>"No need," Astrid replied skeptically, "you're son has been gone over a week without telling anyone where he's gone, or...or so much as a hint of how to find him and you don't think there is any need to worry." Valka nodded as she listened.</p><p>"I mean he doesn't even know the first thing about that place, what if something went wrong, what if the people captured him. He should've at least took some back-up with him. He's being stupid and reckless and he's not thinking about anyone else but himself!"</p><p>"I understand your frustration," Valka replied.</p><p>"No, you don't," Astrid replied. She sighed heavily as she shook her head.</p><p>"Look I get he's been messed up since Stoick...but it's been three years, not that he should be over it, but he needs to...to do what he has to do to move on, take responsibility as Chief and stop running off like this all the time, it's irresponsible and...and it's not fair to anyone else! He needs to move on, just like the rest of us had to!" Valka nodded in understanding.</p><p>"You know as well as I that it's not just Stoick that he needs to move on from," Valka replied. Astrid dropped her eyes as Valka spoke.</p><p>"I'm not saying this to hurt you Astrid, or blame you at all," Valka replied, "I'm saying it because it's true." Astrid remained quiet as she turned her eyes back to Valka.</p><p>"You broke his heart Astrid," Valka went on, "both of you did, though Hiccup will never admit it, it was broken nonetheless."</p><p>"Like he didn't break mine," Astrid replied angrily, "every time he pushed me away, or went off on some adventure leaving me to take care of everything else. Or when he shut me out every time I tried to get through to him after Stoick."</p><p>"I'm not trying to blame you Astrid," Valka reiterated, "and I'm not trying to say that Hiccup wasn't also at fault for how things turned out between you..."</p><p>"What am I supposed to do," Astrid huffed, "apologize for being happy? Hiccup is the one that took me and Eret as a betrayal...but we didn't do anything wrong! I'm not going to feel guilty about being happy anymore! I can't start over worrying about how everything I do makes him feel. That's not how I want to...to live my life, or start my marriage, or...or raise my family!"</p><p>"But that's exactly my point Astrid," Valka replied, "you have moved on, you've found your place, your happiness. Hiccup hasn't yet. He's still searching for something that's been missing for a long time, that's why he keeps going off like he does." Astrid sighed heavily as she continued to listen.</p><p>"Look Astrid, you know Hiccup better than anyone in Berk," Valka continued, "you know he doesn't always share his feelings openly. He keeps it all bottled up and pretends that he doesn't really care either way. But it still bothers him, he still feels incomplete, he still feels restless, and he's still trying to find his place."</p><p>"So what am I supposed to do then Valka," Astrid huffed, "turn a blind eye every time he takes off or...or continue to walk on egg shells around him until he finally moves on?"</p><p>"Maybe just allow him the time he needs to move on," Valka replied, "allow him the time he needs to find what he's always been searching for." Astrid nodded as she listened, but it would be a lie to say that Valka's statement didn't hurt.</p><p>As long as Astrid had known Hiccup. He'd always had a wandering heart, and a nomadic soul. He'd always been searching for something and he was never truly satisfied with whatever he found. He was always looking for something more than what he had, somewhere more than Berk, or maybe even someone other than her. Even though she was happy now, even though she seemed to have found where she truly belonged, the thought of how things ended with Hiccup still hurt.</p><p>He was her first love and she would have gone above and beyond for him but at some point she realized that what they had was not enough and that the two of them were simply not meant to be. She knew that if they stayed together, he would always be searching for something more, and she would always be waiting for that inevitable day that his search would end and he'd ultimately leave her. So she cut her losses and let him go. Although it hurt like hell, she knew in her heart that it was what was best for them both.</p><p>Even so, a part of her had hoped that breaking up with him would make him see that maybe everything he'd always been searching for had been his all along. She hoped that maybe he would realize the she was the end to his search. When that didn't happen her heart broke a little more, but she didn't stop living and she didn't run away. Though it hurt, she simply put it behind her.</p><p>Eret was a big part of her ultimately moving on. Eret had always been there for her as a friend, even when she was with Hiccup. He listened to her complain, he was a shoulder to cry on and a distraction to get her mind off things. After she and Hiccup broke up Eret remained by her side and the two only grew closer. What started as friendship, slowly became something more. She found herself smiling more when Eret was around, missing him when he was gone, and looking forward to spending more and more time with him.</p><p>"It wasn't long before Eret confessed his feelings for her and she to him. But they started their relationship in secret, because neither wanted to hurt Hiccup any more than he already had been. But despite her and Eret 's good intentions, their attempt to spare Hiccup anymore heartache blew up in their faces when Hiccup accidentally stumbled upon the two of them together in the woods.</p><p>Initially when Hiccup found out he was livid. He had accused her of cheating on him with Eret the whole time, and he'd accused Eret of intentionally coming between them. He thought that Eret was the reason they had broken up to begin with and no matter how much she and Eret defended themselves, Hiccup still felt betrayed. It was months before he would even speak to them which was hard on the entire team of riders. Eventually Hiccup came to accept the truth, but he didn't hide his dislike for Eret, and he never truly forgave him.</p><p>That aside, things were at least okay between them for a while, that is, until she announced her engagement to Eret. That seemed to put Hiccup over the edge and he spent more and more time away from Berk. This frustrated her more than anything, because she was the one left to deal with the duties of Chief.</p><p>Not only that, but even though she was moving on and she had every right to, she still felt guilty for hurting him and that infuriated her more than anything. She didn't want to feel guilty, she didn't want his reaction to bother her so much, she just wanted to be happy without having to think about how that made him feel.</p><p>Now here she was once again, still worried about Hiccup, still angry that he left Berk, and still annoyed that amidst her new start, she still had to put her happiness on hold because of him.</p><p>"What exactly are you asking of me Valka," Astrid questioned in an annoyed tone.</p><p>"Just give him more time," Valka replied, "before you send out a search party, Hiccup will be fine he knows what he's doing."</p><p>"I can't do that Valka," she scoffed, "I can't just leave him out there to fend for himself if there is even a remote possibility that he's gotten himself into trouble." Valka nodded in understanding. Astrid gazed at Valka for a long moment as she thought over all she had said.</p><p>"Do you honestly think that Hiccup going to this mystery island, this...this Dunbroch, is going to help him move on," Astrid questioned skeptically, "that somehow he's just going to magically find everything he's always been looking for?"</p><p>"I don't know," Valka replied honestly, "I just know that he's been drawn to that place ever since he came across it, and everything he's found, the...the maps, his grandfather's journal, the pendant...even his dreams, all of it has been leading him back there."</p><p>"Dreams," Astrid questioned curiously.</p><p>"Yes dreams," Valka answered, "he's been having dreams of DunBroch...and a girl there. I don't know what these dreams mean and I don't even think he does." Astrid gazed at Valka with an emotionless expression.</p><p>"I have a feeling," Valka went on, "that in DunBroch maybe he'll find what he's been searching for all this time, maybe he'll find where he was always meant to be...and maybe then he can finally be happy, finally feel like he belongs."</p><p>"Okay," Astrid sighed, "look, I'm still going to send Eret and Fishlegs after him, but just to make sure he's okay. If they find him and everything is fine, then we'll leave him be...for now." Valka smiled slightly and nodded in Astrid's direction. Astrid nodded back.</p><p>...<br/>DunBroch</p><p>Elinor stood silently on the balcony of her quarters overlooking the vast forest of DunBroch. She sighed heavily as she contemplated all that had been discussed at the meeting with Lord Dingwall. It wasn't a complete surprise to her, as the Lords had been hinting at their disparagement of Merida's lack of interest in even the idea of a betrothal. It was no secret that their patience in the matter had worn thin over these past five years, but Elinor had hoped her daughter would have found someone and fallen in love by now.</p><p>It was difficult to get Merida to even discuss the matter at all, now Elinor wondered how she would even tell her daughter about this new proposal of the Lords without her overreacting or feeling betrayed. She feared that the prospect of taking away Merida's freedom of choice would only push her daughter further away. The last thing she wanted was to hurt the bond they had formed since the bear incident. That in mind, Elinor knew that if she stood by and allowed this to happen she would no doubt lose Merida forever. She didn't know what to do. She was distracted from her troubled thoughts as Fergus lay his hands gently upon her shoulders.</p><p>"It's alright dear," he said softly, "we will figure this out."</p><p>"Aye," Elinor sighed, "I hope so, Merida will not be happy about this."</p><p>"Aye but it's only a technicality Elinor," Fergus replied, "she just has to appease the Lord's. Their sons will come and she'll have to go through the motions of the wooing so that the Lords will be satisfied that their sons had a fair shot." Fergus chuckled lightly.</p><p>"This is serious Fergus," Elinor replied.</p><p>"Ah know, Ah know," Fergus replied dismissively.</p><p>"Fergus if she chooses none," Elinor went on, "then they will force a marriage upon her! If that were to happen I don't know what she'll do! She's too much of a free spirit, she wants to rule on her own, in her own way. She doesn't even entertain the idea of marriage!"</p><p>"Elinor, yer being just a wee bit dramatic don't ye think," Fergus replied.</p><p>"Maybe," Elinor sighed heavily, "maybe I am, I just...I just don't know what to say to her. I mean, how can I go to her and tell her what the Lords have proposed. She'll hate me Fergus!"</p><p>"She's yer daughter Elinor," Fergus replied, "she could never hate ye."</p><p>"I hope yer right," Elinor replied, "the last thing I want is to lose her all over again after all that we've been through."</p><p>"I think yer bond is stronger then ye know dear," Fergus replied. Elinor nodded as she took in his words.</p><p>"Well what should we do," Elinor asked.</p><p>"Well we should just tell her the truth," Fergus replied, "tell her what the Lords propose, tell her that ye and I stand firm in our decision and that we will stand by her's as well, whatever her choice may be. Most of all we should just hope for the best."</p><p>"Hope for the best," Elinor questioned flatly.</p><p>"Aye," Fergus replied, "I know yer worried but I have a feeling everything will work out just as it should be."</p><p>"Ye are nothing if not hopeful to a fault dear, " Elinor smiled subtly though the worry still showed in her eyes.</p><p>"Well there is still time dear," Fergus replied with a shrug, "maybe she'll meet some lucky lad and fall in love before the Lords can do any harm. For all we know she could have met him already and is falling for him as we speak."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Questions of the Heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 13</p><p>It had been five days since Hiccup had arrived in DunBroch and nearly three since he and Merida had been led to the standing stones by the will o' the wisps. Unfortunately the wisps had not appeared to them again and, thus far, they had no luck finding the witch's cottage on their own. Hiccup had begun to wonder if the wisps would ever show themselves again.</p><p>It was late in the afternoon when they decided to stop to rest after a long day of searching. On this particular day, thick gray clouds hung low in the sky, making the world below look darker than it should've been at that hour. It had been gloomy all day, there was a slight chill in the air and gradually the breeze had grown to a strong wind, giving every indication of a brewing storm.</p><p>Just as they dismounted Toothless the heavens opened up and a heavy rain began to fall. The thick rain drops pummeled the ground with hundreds of tiny thuds. Hiccup and Merida ran hand in hand to a nearby cave for shelter with Toothless following close behind. Merida and Hiccup nearly stumbled into the cave laughing hysterically, both already soaked to the bone. Toothless groaned as he shook off the rain from his head to his tail, causing them both to laugh even more as they ducked to avoid the flying water drops.</p><p>"Awe come on Toothless," Hiccup laughed, "like we weren't wet enough already. Toothless just sat on his haunches and seemed to smirk at Hiccup.</p><p>As Hiccup's laughter faded he turned to Merida. Her bright smile and laughter lit up her face making her positively breathtaking. His heart nearly melted at the sight. He quickly averted his gaze and turned his attention back to the pounding rain outside the mouth of the cave.</p><p>"Jeeze, that's a lot of rain," Hiccup chuckled as he wiped the dripping water from his face, "I feel like I just went for a swim."</p><p>"Well Dunbroch is known for the occasional torrential downpour," Merida replied with a grin, "if ye think this is bad ye should visit during the rainy season." She sighed as she lowered the hood of her cloak and pulled her long red hair over her shoulder. Then she attempted to wring the water out from her hair.</p><p>"That's nothing" he chuckled as he pushed his own soaking wet hair back and out of his face, "in Berk it snows nine months of the year, and hails the other three."</p><p>"Is that so," Merida replied.</p><p>"You think I'm joking," Hiccup replied, "we have four seasons in Berk. Mild winter, winter, devastating winter, and summer which is technically only a tad milder than mild winter."</p><p>"Sounds lovely," she replied sarcastically. Hiccup chuckled. A loud clap of thunder rumbled above them, causing them both to startle. They looked over to the mouth of the cave.</p><p>"Well," Hiccup sighed, "I guess this means our search for the witch is over for the day."</p><p>"Aye," Merida sighed in slight disappointment, "I really thought if we got close enough to where her cottage might be, that the wisps would have led us the rest o' the way, but it seems as if they've abandoned us."</p><p>"Or maybe they think finding this witch is not that great of an idea after all," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Or maybe she simply doesn't want to be found," Merida replied with a grin as she raised an eyebrow at him. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Well, either way, I think maybe we should start coming up with another way to find out about this spell," he replied with a shrug.</p><p>"Aye," she replied, "I wish I knew where to start." She sighed heavily as she thought about it."I wish there was some way to know when the wisps would appear or...or that there was some way we could ask them for help."</p><p>"That would be ideal," Hiccup replied.</p><p>She sighed as she stepped up to the mouth the cave and gazed up at the falling rain drops. Hiccup followed after her, he leaned up against the opposite side of the cave entrance and gazed up at the rain and the low dark clouds. The sky above was dark gray, and was growing darker by the minute. There seemed to be no end in sight to the storm.</p><p>"Looks like we're going to be here a while," she said. Another deep rumble of thunder echoed above them. Hiccup nodded in reply.</p><p>"If this doesn't let up before dark I'm flying you home," Hiccup replied as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye, "I'll take my chances with the guards." Merida turned to him and chuckled.</p><p>"Well, at least a night in the dungeon would be dry," Merida replied with a smirk.</p><p>"Leave it to you to find the bright side of being thrown in a dungeon," Hiccup chuckled as he crossed his arms over his chest. She smiled up at him before turning her eyes back to the rain.</p><p>Hiccup turned and gazed at her for a long moment smiling slightly. He could feel his heart flutter as he took in the beautiful sight before him. Her red hair cascaded over her shoulder shimmering like a waterfall. Her hair looked even longer weighed down by the rain and her normally wild curls seemed almost tame. Despite the dismal and cloudy day, her light blue eyes still sparkled in what little light was left and the water droplets that dotted her skin nearly glistened, giving her an almost angelic glow. Hiccup shook his head as he realized he was staring once again and he quickly averted his gaze.</p><p>Over the past week, he had found himself admiring her more often, gazing at her longer than he should at times, and silently longing for even just a touch of her hand. Whenever he was around her it felt as if the hollow places that had always been inside him didn't feel quite so hollow anymore. It seemed the more time he spent with her, the more he liked her, and the stronger his feelings seemed to become.</p><p>For the past few days he couldn't stop thinking about their previous conversation. The more he thought of all her reasons to avoid love, the more he longed to persuade her otherwise. He couldn't put his finger on why it felt so pertinent to do so, but he was determined to try. There was still a chance after all, albeit small and riddled with obstacles, it still existed and for the first time in years he felt almost brave enough to let his heart take a chance again. Almost.</p><p>Even so, he didn't know exactly what he should do about his feelings. At first he questioned wether he was having real feelings for this girl that he'd only just met, or if he was simply infatuated with her because she looked so much like the woman from his great great grandfather's journal. Though he'd tried to rationalize them, it was becoming fairly obvious that his feelings were growing and getting harder and harder to ignore. He found himself thinking of her when they were apart, looking for ways to make her smile when they were together or even an excuse to hold her hand.</p><p>Though he wanted to tell her how he was feeling, he wasn't sure he should. In fact there were a number of things that seemed to be hindering him from doing so. First there was the fact that they'd only known each other for barely a week. Could he really be falling for someone he'd only just met? Though it felt as if they'd known each other longer, they still had much to learn about one another, and there was still much they didn't know. They were still just beginning to get to know each other.</p><p>Then there was the fact that he was a Viking, an unfortunate fact that he knew would be a problem. Her mother did not think highly of Vikings. And, judging by what happened to their grandparents, he didn't think her people would think very highly of him either. If he were to pursue her, it would take much effort to prove himself.</p><p>Then of course there was the fear of his feelings being unrequited. He couldn't tell if she felt anything more than friendship for him. Though, there were moments when he thought she might, still he couldn't be sure. She'd never said anything outright nor given him much of any indication that she did. Except for maybe the one time when she kissed his cheek the day they met but even that could have been just in friendship. There were times when he thought that he'd been nearly transparent about his feelings around her and yet she never really even seemed to notice. If she had noticed, she had never really acknowledged it. It sort of made him feel as though she didn't have interest in him other than friendship. But then there were times that she would turn around and tell him something she admired about him, which only caused him to question himself and his feelings even more. It was all very confusing to him.</p><p>He took a deep breath as his thoughts began to overwhelm him. Maybe his mother was right after all, maybe he did tend to overcomplicate things. He sighed as Valka's previous words flashed through his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"When it comes to love you shouldn't have to overthink things. With true love, there is no doubts, no second guessing, and nothing could dare come between you." Hiccup gazed at his mother in surprise.</p><p>"You need to stop punishing yourself for what happened with Astrid and move on," Valka said firmly, "don't close your heart completely just because you've been hurt once." Hiccup nodded as he pondered his mother's words. He turned his eyes back to the horizon.</p><p>"Hiccup, when you find the one you're meant for," Valka continued, "you'll know it, without question, "you'll feel it in your soul."</p><p>...</p><p>He sighed as the words flashed through his mind. He still didn't quite know how to define his feelings for Merida. Was this love? At times it certainly felt like love. At the very least it could be the beginnings of love. But then if there was any truth to Valka's words, if there was no doubts or second guessing when it came to love, was the fact that he wasn't sure an indication that this wasn't love at all. Could his feelings just be some intense feelings of infatuation after all?</p><p>He shook his head slightly as he tried to rationalize his feelings. He still could not explain his and Merida's immediate connection, nor the chemistry they seemed to have from the start. He couldn't rationalize why he couldn't stop thinking about her since the moment they met, nor why his heart raced every time she was near. He thought back to the first day they met.</p><p>...</p><p>"I thought ye would of at least put up a little bit of a fight, then I could brag to my brothers how I single handedly killed an evil Viking!" Hiccup shook his head in amusement and confusion.</p><p>"Sorry to disappoint you," he replied in a questioning tone. She slowly un-notched her arrow and replaced it in her quiver as she brushed the mess of red curls away from her face.</p><p>"Stand up ye glaikit Viking," Merida huffed. Hiccup quickly got back on his feet. He stared at her unwittingly, still shocked by the uncanny resemblance between her and the girl in the sketch, and completely taken by her beauty. His heart seemed to be racing as he gazed at her.</p><p>"What," she asked defensively, "what are ye staring at?"</p><p>"I...I'm not...sorry," Hiccup said, quickly averting his eyes, "uh...no, uh I meant I am sorry, I...I didn't mean to...that is, you just look...so...familiar." He grinned at her sheepishly. He could feel his face flush slightly and prayed she didn't notice. She gazed up at him trying to stifle her amusement as he stumbled on his words.</p><p>...</p><p>It seemed Hiccup was completely taken with her from the start, it was her beauty that had struck him at first sight, but it was so much more than that now. It was practically everything about her that drew him to her, but it was her heart the drew him most of all. Her heart was limitless, and genuine, and pure. The level to which she seemed to genuinely care about those around her and even about a guy she had just met, astounded him. She was beautiful inside and out and he wanted nothing more than to be around her. Though he didn't know if what he was feeling was love, what he knew for certain was that he was happiest when they were together. It was the happiest he'd been in very a long time and he certainly didn't want that feeling to end. He just wanted to be with her more and more. He sighed heavily.</p><p>Maybe overthinking was the problem. Maybe thinking about it too much was hindering him from taking a real chance. Maybe he should just stop thinking and just let things happen as they may. Maybe he should just take a leap of faith.</p><p>"Easier said then done," he thought to himself. Up until this point he had all but given up on the idea of love. It was not because he didn't believe in it but because he feared the uncertainty of it. There were too many variables when it came to love, too many unpredictable elements, too many things that could go wrong, and far too many unforeseen obstacles. He wasn't sure his heart was ready to try again, and yet the very thought of finding love again with her seemed to be all he could think about. As he grappled with these conflicting thoughts, Merida's words from days ago ran through his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"It's okay ye know," she replied, "to be afraid." Hiccup glanced at her curiously.<br/>"Ye've been hurt," Merida stated matter of factly, "but it seems to me yer not afraid of love itself as much as yer afraid of failing at it." Hiccup just gazed at her once again struck wordless by her ability to talk sense into him.</p><p>"Her happiness is a reminder of yer failure," Merida went on, "yer afraid of going through that heartbreak again, but ye cannae let that fear stop ye from finding love again." She stepped closer to him and pressed a hand firmly to his chest.</p><p>"Ye need to open yer heart to the possibility," she shrugged, "otherwise when love does find ye, and it will, ye could miss it."</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup sighed again. He was afraid. Though he'd never truly admitted it to anyone but her, he feared it just the same. He was afraid of rejection, he was afraid of the possibility of another heartbreak, he was afraid she wouldn't feel the same. But mostly he was afraid he'd screw it up again, like he had with Astrid.</p><p>For certain what had happened with Astrid had left some scars. Though he'd done his best to overcome them, they still stung. At times they hurt just as much as the day they were made. Most of that was from his own guilt in the matter. While he had blamed her for the break-up initially, he could no longer deny the fact that it was just as much his fault, if not more, that things had ended as it did. He was the one who took their relationship for granted. He was the one that treated her like an afterthought at times. When his dad died it was even worse. Despite Astrid's many attempts to get through to him, he shut her out completely. The truth was that it was mostly his fault that they broke up. In his self-pity he simply told himself love wasn't for him. But now he had begun to question his own judgement in the matter. He shook his head as he tried to push his conflicting thoughts to the back of his mind.</p><p>Merida shuddered slightly as a gust of wind blew past them both. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself in what seemed a fleeting attempt for warmth. Hiccup turned to her when he noticed her shiver.</p><p>"You cold," he asked in genuine concern.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied as she continued to shiver, "it has gotten a wee bit chilly hasn't it."</p><p>"Well I'm sure it doesn't help that your cloak is soaked through," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Come on," he said as he took her by the hand and led her back into the cave, "you get that wet cloak off before you catch a cold, and I'll get a fire started." Merida smiled up at him as she followed him back inside. As he gathered as many dry twigs as he could find in the cave, she peeled the sopping wet cloak from herself and began to wring it out. She then hung it up on a rock that jutted out from a place on the cave wall. Hiccup dropped the wood he managed to find in a small pile on the ground before him. He then pulled his dragon blade from its holster at his hip then extended the blade and ignited it. He held the flame to the wood pile until it began to smolder. Merida gazed at him wide-eyed, intrigued at the sight of the flaming sword.</p><p>"What is that," she questioned in intrigue.</p><p>"What," Hiccup questioned as he looked up at her. He saw her eyes glued to the still ignited dragon blade.</p><p>"Oh this," he said in realization as he held up the blade. Merida nodded.</p><p>"It's a dragon blade," he replied, "I call it Inferno. Some people have said that it's a stupid name, but I like it. I think it makes it sound more formidable." He extinguished the flame and handed it over to her. She took the blade carefully in her hand and examined it.</p><p>"Just don't touch the blade just yet," he smirked, "it's probably still hot."<br/>"How does it work," she questioned as she wielded the blade expertly in her hand. Hiccup watched her in interest.</p><p>"Well it, uh, it kinda works like a flint and stone," Hiccup replied, "here look." Merida paused as Hiccup approached her. He pointed to a switch on the hilt.</p><p>"This causes a spark which ignites the flame," he said simply.</p><p>"But how does the blade withstand the flame," she asked curiously.</p><p>"Well, this particular blade is made of Gronkle iron," Hiccup replied, "a friend of mine discovered it, we found that the metal is extremely strong and highly heat resistant."</p><p>"Amazing," she replied.</p><p>"Yeah but also a problem when your trying to make a flaming sword," Hiccup replied as he took the blade back, "but there is a specific dragon in Berk called a Monstrous Nightmare. They produce this thick green gel that's highly flammable. They use it to basically set themselves on fire. So I thought I could use it on my blade. In the hilt is a canister of it." He opened the hilt to show her.</p><p>"So when I retract the blade," he demonstrated, "it sits in the gel." He extended the blade again before her eyes and then hit the switch to ignite the blade.</p><p>"The spark ignites the flammable gel that coats the blade." He extinguished the flame and retracted the blade.</p><p>"That's amazing Hiccup," she replied. He smiled at her proudly.</p><p>"Thanks," he replied. He smiled at her.</p><p>"You know," he sighed as he replaced the blade in its holster, "you're not so bad with a sword." She blushed slightly at his compliment.</p><p>"Thanks, my dad taught me," she replied with a shrug, "I'm not perfect but as ye know my weapon of choice is not a sword." Hiccup chuckled slightly.</p><p>"Oh I know," he grinned.</p><p>"So...yer an inventor as well," she replied changing the subject, "just like yer great great grand-da."</p><p>"Yeah," he replied as he thought about it, "I guess that's another thing I have in common with him." She smiled slightly as she nodded.</p><p>"What else do ye have in common with him," she asked.</p><p>"Oh...I don't know...smaller stature," he said sarcastically as he chuckled. Merida smirked at him.</p><p>"What, it's true," he replied defensively as he crossed his arms over his chest, "that's why his name was Hiccup to begin with." Merida gazed at him incredulously.</p><p>"I thought ye said that was to scare away trolls," she replied flatly.</p><p>"That too," he smirked, "but also because he was smaller than most Vikings. Like I said before, Vikings like their offspring to be big and strong. A smaller scrawnier child would've been seen as an unfortunate accident of the Gods...ya know a hiccup."</p><p>"That's terrible," she replied.</p><p>"It is what it is," Hiccup shrugged, "he did turn out to be a great leader though. I like to think I was named after him for that reason rather than the former, but most likely it was for my disappointing size." Merida shook her head and sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest.</p><p>"Ye know Hiccup," Merida replied, "it's not often that ye speak well of yer self."</p><p>"Yeah well, I guess that's what happens when your entire village ridicules you practically your whole life," he replied sarcastically, "you develop a jaded outlook on life." He shook his head, "honestly if I wasn't the chief's son I'm pretty certain that my village would have decided to use me for dragon bait a long time ago."</p><p>"Aye, well even if that may be," Merida replied, "ye've more than proven yer self since then." Hiccup gazed at her curiously. Merida smiled slightly.</p><p>"I mean, yer not a wee lad anymore Hiccup," Merida replied with a soft smile, "yer a grown man. Think of all ye've done since then, all ye've accomplished, despite how yer village saw ye. Ye more than showed yer clan what yer worth. They accepted ye as their Chief didn't they?" Hiccup nodded. She stepped closer to him as she smiled up at him.</p><p>Maybe it's time ye just...put all o' that negative stuff behind ye," she continued, "and take pride in who ye are right now. Because who ye are right now is pretty impressive if ye ask me." She raised an eyebrow at him as she grinned.</p><p>He smiled warmly at her, though, once again at a loss for words. He felt a blush arise on his cheeks and he prayed it was hidden by the glow of the fire. It seemed she never could cease to amaze him with her thoughtful words. He wished he could see himself the way she seemed to see him. Just knowing that she thought so highly of him made him want to live up to her expectations all the more. For a moment he thought even if she were the only one to have such faith in him, even if she were the only person in this world to ever see him in such a way, he could be happy the rest of his life. He suddenly realized that he was staring at her once again. He quickly averted his eyes.</p><p>"Maybe you're right," he replied as he looked at her once more, "maybe it is time I...I...moved on." Merida smiled up at him. He smiled back at her as he gazed at her longingly once again. He noticed a few strands of her wet hair were still sticking to the side of her face. Without thought, he lifted his hand to her soft cheek and gently brushed the wet strands back from her beautiful face. He paused for a long moment as if debating his actions.</p><p>Merida felt her heart pounding as he gazed at her. The feel of his hand on her cheek caused her breath to hitch, and the intense way he looked at her caused her to tremble slightly. She wondered what he was thinking when he looked at her in such a way. It was not the first time she'd noticed his intense gaze and she couldn't help but be reminded of the Viking gazing at her in her dream. His gaze made her nervous, and caused her heart to race.</p><p>As if suddenly coming to his senses, Hiccup shook his head and averted his eyes once again. He dropped his hand from her face and took a step back. Merida sighed slightly.</p><p>"You're still cold," he said as if he'd suddenly remembered, "uh...s-sit down by the fire." He gazed at her as he backed away a few more steps, then turned and jogged over to Toothless.</p><p>"So," she sighed as she sat upon the dusty floor of the cave,"what else do ye have in common, with Hiccup the first?" Hiccup thought about it for a moment as he began to rummage through the bag on Toothless' saddle. He pulled a furry blanket out and turned back to her.</p><p>"Maybe his way of thinking about things," he replied as he opened the folded blanket and draped it around her shoulders. Merida looked up at him and smiled as she wrapped the warm blanket around herself.</p><p>"What do ye mean exactly," Merida asked.</p><p>"Well, he...he sorta had a...a scientific way of thinking about things, Hiccup replied, "I think I'm a lot like him that way. It...it seems like he did a lot of observing," Hiccup replied. He sat down beside her with his legs crossed.</p><p>"I mean, just judging by his journal," Hiccup continued, "he recorded a lot of what he observed, and he studied things to understand them better. I've always been like that too." Merida nodded.</p><p>"In fact he happens to be one of the original authors of our dragon manual," Hiccup glanced at her as he spoke.</p><p>"Dragon manual," she questioned.</p><p>"It's a book of all the different dragon species and what we know about them, abilities, weaknesses that sort of thing," he replied, "of course since we've made peace with the dragons I've been updating the information myself with new things we learn about them, ya know, since we can study them better now. I've also been adding new entries as we discover new dragon species."</p><p>"I'd like to see that," she replied in interest, "how many different kinds of dragons are there?"</p><p>"That we know of," Hiccup asked. Merida nodded. He paused and thought for a moment.</p><p>"About a hundred and twenty seven," he replied, "so far anyway." She gazed at him wide-eyed.</p><p>"That's a lot of dragons," she replied in surprise. Hiccup nodded. He gazed at her curiously. He turned his eyes back to the fire and the two fell into a comfortable silence.</p><p>"Of course having a scientific way of thinking, can kinda feel like a curse at times," he replied absentmindedly.</p><p>"Why is that," Merida asked.</p><p>"Because I tend to think about things a little too much sometimes, and over analyze practically everything," Hiccup sighed, "it can be a little frustrating at times. Especially in situations where overthinking can be...detrimental." Merida furrowed her brow as she tried to decipher his meaning. Hiccup looked at her feeling slightly self-conscious.</p><p>"Like for example," Hiccup paused a moment as he carefully weighed his words, "like...uh...situations involving emotions. Emotions can be a little tricky for someone who thinks that way."</p><p>"Why is that," Merida asked.</p><p>"Because," he sighed, "emotions don't make any sense, ya know, they...they are u-unpredictable, unreliable, a-and uncontrollable. And there is never ever a simple answer to make sense of them."</p><p>"Of course not," Merida replied matter-of-factly. Hiccup furrowed his brow in slight confusion as he gazed at her.</p><p>"Emotions are...are feelings," Merida replied, "ye can't think about them with yer head, ye...ye feel them with yer heart." He looked back at the fire as he thought about what she said.</p><p>"Ever hear the saying, 'follow yer heart'," she questioned. Hiccup looked back at her and nodded.</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied, "who hasn't, I...I mean, but that's just something people say when there is no easy answer."</p><p>"Well I think they say it because yer head is often wrong," Merida replied, "or at least flawed."</p><p>"How do you mean," he asked curiously.</p><p>"Well, sometimes what seems like the right answer in here," she pointed to his head, "is often the wrong answer in here." She pointed to his heart. He furrowed his brow at her.</p><p>"Take Toothless for instance," she went on, "why didn't ye just kill him?"</p><p>"Because it was wrong, "Hiccup replied immediately.</p><p>"Even though yer whole life ye were taught to fear him," Merida replied, "even though ye were raised to hate dragons and...and ye were told they were the enemy." Hiccup nodded again.</p><p>"Why," she questioned.</p><p>"Well I...I didn't really think about it," he replied, "I just knew,...it...it felt wrong.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "yer heart told ye it was wrong." Hiccup nodded as he thought about it.</p><p>"I guess that makes sense," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"It's like when I met ye," Merida went on, "I had no reason to trust ye. All my life my mum has warned me about Vikings. She told me they were nothin' more than blood thirsty heathens that would kill whoever stood in their way. I knew in my head all Vikings were bad. But then ye knelt before me, and ye surrendered. And though it could have been a trick, my heart told me otherwise. I...I just knew ye were different, that I had no need to fear."</p><p>Hiccup smiled warmly in her direction. His heart fluttered at her words.</p><p>"Not that ye shouldn't also use yer head," Merida went on, "sometimes yer heart can make yer judgment a bit cloudy." She paused as she thought about it more. "Maybe it's all about finding the right balance between yer head and yer heart." She sighed as she stared into the fire. "Maybe ye can get into trouble when ye lean to far one way or the other." She chuckled. Hiccup looked at her curiously as he thought over what she had said. Merida glanced at him briefly.</p><p>"I mean, for example," she went on, "sometimes I tend to let my emotions cloud my judgement a bit, which can also be detrimental...in...in certain situations."</p><p>"You," Hiccup replied in mock surprise, "no!"</p><p>"Clam up ye glaikit viking " Merida chuckled as she pushed him. Hiccup turned his eyes back to the fire as he laughed.</p><p>"I admit," Merida sighed, "I did sort o' overreact a bit when we first met."</p><p>"Oh, just a bit," he replied sarcastically, "is that all?" Merida rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.</p><p>"I apologized didn't I," she huffed.</p><p>"Well, it was kind of a little flattering," Hiccup replied, "not many people would mistake me for a womanizer."</p><p>"Ye think it was flattering for me to mistake ye for a cad," Merida replied in annoyance.</p><p>"Well when you put it like that," Hiccup laughed. Merida smirked at him.</p><p>"What made you change your mind anyway," Hiccup questioned amidst his laughter. Merida paused as she thought about it.</p><p>"I...I don't know exactly," she replied with a shrug, "It was a...a feeling I guess, something in me just told me to...to give ye a chance, that there was more to ye than meets the eye." Hiccup gazed at her in intrigue. He wondered if the feeling she had that first day to give him a chance was the same feeing he had to not let her go.</p><p>"Well," he sighed, "I guess that makes us the perfect pair then." He glanced at her briefly from the corner of his eye. "Maybe we could really balance each other out, ya know."</p><p>Merida smiled at his comment as a slight blush formed on her cheeks.</p><p>"Ya know," Hiccup went on, "you can act irrationally about a problem, and I'll over-analyze it and then maybe we will manage to find the answer somewhere in the middle."</p><p>"Over emotional is not the same thing as irrational," she groaned.</p><p>"If you say so," he replied.</p><p>"Hiccup," she exclaimed as she hit him playfully in the arm.</p><p>"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," he laughed. She crossed her arms over her chest and smirked at him.</p><p>You're too easy," he laughed. Merida giggled slightly as she turned her eyes back to the fire.</p><p>"Well, we've talked enough about me, what about you," he asked changing the subject, "what do you think you have in common with Mairead?" Merida paused as she thought about it for a long moment.</p><p>"Well," it's strange," Merida replied, "all my life I've been told about her, how great a queen she was, how regal, how proper." She paused a moment as she looked back at Hiccup.</p><p>"We have this grand portrait of her in the study," she went on, "and she looks like the perfect lady, beautiful and poised and every bit the queen she was. I just remember staring at it sometimes and thinking how on earth was I expected to live up to such perfection. But now...now from what I've read in her journal, it turns out she wasn't so perfect after all, was she? I mean, she disagreed with her parents, she had arguments with her mother, a-and she longed to be free of the expectations of her station. Not to mention she broke many rules." Merida looked up at Hiccup and grinned slightly.</p><p>"Now that I've seen her in this new light, I think I have more in common with her than I ever thought before," she replied. Hiccup smiled at her.</p><p>"That and your crazy red hair," he chuckled.</p><p>"Aye, that too," Merida laughed, "oh and archery, my father always told me that she was an expert archer. In fact when he taught me, I took to it so quickly that he said I was a natural and that I must've gotten it from her."</p><p>"Well that is something I can definitely attest to," Hiccup smirked as he raised an eyebrow at her, "having been on the receiving end of your bow, you are definitely an expert."</p><p>"Hiccup," she laughed as she pushed him playfully.</p><p>"What," he laughed, "it's true...I mean I was legitimately afraid for my life!" Merida rolled her eyes. She grinned suddenly as a thought occurred to her.</p><p>"Ye wanna hear something crazy," Merida asked.</p><p>"What's that," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"From what I've read in her journal," Merida continued, "Mairead learned to shoot from none other than yer great great grandfather." Hiccup gazed at her in surprise.</p><p>"My grandfather taught your grandmother archery," he questioned in surprise. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Aye, it was the first rule they broke," Merida replied, "it seems her mother was a lot like mine, totally against her daughter learning to fight, or even having a weapon at all."</p><p>"That's actually pretty interesting," he replied.</p><p>"Aye," she sighed dreamily, "ye wanna know why I think Mairead liked Hiccup the first best of all?"</p><p>"Why," Hiccup asked in intrigue.</p><p>"Because," she sighed as she gazed into the warm fire, "he never treated her like a princess. He only saw her as she was not what she was expected to be." Hiccup smiled at her answer. She turned her eyes to him and smiled back.</p><p>"He saw right through to the real her and he loved her, imperfections and all," she dropped her eyes to the ground and sighed softly, "I think that's all she ever really wanted." She turned her eyes back to the fire and gazed at it with a far off look in her eye. Hiccup smiled tenderly in her direction. He reached over and gently took her hand in his.</p><p>"You'll find that too ya know," he said softly. She turned to him with a look of uncertainty on her face. Though she had every intention of keeping her heart open and giving real love a chance, she still remained slightly skeptical that the kind of love she longed for could ever truly be found. She had never been a typical girl, she never dreamed of finding her true love, she never thought about her future wedding, she was far to busy learning to fight and ride. She was busy trying to avoid being a princess. But the older she got the thoughts of finding love grew more and more. Especially more recently. It seemed after her conversation with Hiccup days ago, she now couldn't stop thinking about love and the possibility of finding it. Before the possibility seemed like some far off notion that wasn't truly real. But Hiccup made her see things in a new light. He made her realize that love, though unpredictable was still something that was worth finding and that she shouldn't give up on the possibility. Now as he gazed at her, she could feel her heart fluttering and she had begun to wonder if love might not be so far off a notion anymore. Maybe, perhaps, it was even right in front of her.</p><p>Over the past week she had begun to notice her feelings for Hiccup were growing every day, but she was still uncertain what that meant. For certain Hiccup was her first true friend. He seemed to genuinely care for her, and he seemed to like her just as she was, of this she had no doubt. But the way he looked at her sometimes caused her heart to skip and she began to wonder if he felt anything more.</p><p>"Ye really think so," she questioned. Hiccup leaned a little closer to her and smiled. He held his breath as he gazed into her sky blues eyes that sparkled radiantly in the glow of the fire. He could feel his heart flutter as he absentmindedly leaned just a little closer. His mind was racing and he struggled to formulate his jumbled thoughts into words. His heart seemed to be screaming at him to tell her how he really felt, but his fear of doing so was still deep-rooted in his mind.</p><p>Merida gazed up at him anxiously as she awaited his response. Under the weight of her gaze Hiccup felt as if he couldn't breath. Her blue eyes were nearly hypnotic and Hiccup found himself practically unable to turn away.</p><p>"Of...of course," he stuttered as he gazed at her longingly, "I...uh...I...I think..." He hesitated a moment as he seemed to lose the words he was trying to say. He unwittingly leaned a little closer.</p><p>Merida just gazed up into his green eyes as she felt her heart begin to race. Without thinking she leaned slightly towards him. She didn't quite know how to define her feelings for Hiccup. All she knew in this moment was that she genuinely cared for this man, and he seemed to genuinely care for her. Her mind flashed back to their earlier conversation.</p><p>...</p><p>"You're an amazing person Merida," Hiccup said, "I mean, you're beautiful, your witty, smart, fearless and...just...amazing with that bow of your's." He chuckled under his breath. Merida continued to gaze up at him as a blush arose on her cheeks. Hiccup leaned a little closer to her as he continued to look into her eyes.</p><p>"Everything you just said, everything you want in a relationship...you deserve to have all of it. You deserve to be happy," he said firmly, "and you're crazy if you think that there is no one in this world that could see past your title to who you are in here." He pointed to her heart.</p><p>...</p><p>Now they sat before the fire gazing at one another, so close that if he'd leaned just a tad closer, he could have kissed her if he wanted to. She almost wished he would. That way she would know what his feelings really were. They were friends, of that she was certain, but there were times that he would look at her in such a way that it caused her heart to flutter. He seemed as drawn to her as she was to him. But she was still unsure what that meant exactly. As she gazed back at him her father's words echoed through her mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"Well ye've always followed yer own path. lass," Fergus replied, "Yer independent, self reliant, those are all very good things, but someday ye may want something more, ye may find ye want someone to walk the path with ye. Someone that cares for ye, that ye laugh with, someone that challenges ye, and is not afraid to tell ye yer wrong." Merida sighed as her father spoke.</p><p>"All I'm saying lass, is to just live with an open heart. If ye keep yer heart opened to at least the possibility, then love will be sure to find ye in time, maybe even when ye least expect it."<br/>...</p><p>"I...I think it...it's just uh...uh...a matter of time," Hiccup stuttered as he continued to gaze at her. He could feel his mouth go dry as he silently resisted the urge to move closer. "I...I...mean...uh as long as you keep an opened heart and an opened mind." He reluctantly leaned away from her and averted his gaze. Merida sighed slightly and turned her eyes back to the fire. Maybe these feelings were all in her head. Hiccup was only the first boy to ever show genuine interest in her as a person rather than a princess. Perhaps that's what drew her to him, perhaps she was only infatuated with the idea of it being more. She wrapped her arms around her legs pulling the blanket tighter around her and then rested her chin upon her knees.</p><p>"I'm not so sure I believe that entirely," she muttered to herself.</p><p>The sound of Toothless' stomach growling disturbed the silence, causing both to look up at the dragon. Toothless groaned in annoyance as he glanced back and forth between Hiccup and Merida.</p><p>"What are ya hungry bud," Hiccup asked as he stood and made his way over to Toothless. He reached for the bag of food.</p><p>"Let me see what's left," he said as he rifled through the bag. He found a few pieces of dried fish. He tossed them to Toothless. Toothless quickly gobbled them up and sniffed at Hiccup looking for more.</p><p>"Sorry bud," Hiccup shrugged, "that's all that's left except for a few apples. Did ya want one of those?" Toothless snorted in discontent.</p><p>"Yeah I didn't think so," Hiccup chuckled, "we'll catch some more fish after this storm let's up, okay bud."</p><p>As Hiccup hooked the bag back onto Toothless' saddle, he subtly peered around the dragon to see Merida. She sat quietly gazing into the fire. He didn't know why he got so flustered around her. He quickly turned away and leaned his back up against Toothless as he gazed blankly up at the ceiling of the cave. He sighed heavily. Toothless turned to him and growled curiously. Hiccup turned to face the dragon.</p><p>"It's nothing bud, I'm fine," he replied in a low voice. Toothless stared at him disbelievingly. He softly nudged Hiccup forward. Hiccup turned to the dragon once again.</p><p>"What," Hiccup asked in slight annoyance. Toothless nodded in Merida's direction and then batted his eyes. Hiccup groaned.</p><p>"No bud, it...it's not like that," he replied, "we're just...we're just friends." He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed again. Toothless raised an eyebrow at Hiccup and gave him a sideways look, as if to say, "are ya serious?" Hiccup rolled his eyes again.</p><p>"What," Hiccup questioned in annoyance, "don't look at me like that."</p><p>Toothless rolled his eyes and shook his head. He wondered why his rider was such a dunce when it came to Merida. It was so obvious, to him at least, that they both felt something for each other. But each of them seemed to be oblivious to how the other felt. He wondered why humans made something that should be so simple, so difficult. Perhaps it was some kind of mating ritual that humans had that he just didn't understand. If that were the case, it didn't make any sense to him whatsoever. Honestly, it seemed completely counter productive to showing the opposite sex you were interested. Toothless huffed slightly. He was thankful he was not a human. Humans had a tendency to overcomplicate everything especially when it came to love. It seemed that humans tended to think too much about things that ought not to involve thought at all. Choosing a mate was about instinct and chemistry and feelings.When dragons choose a mate they choose with their heart. He didn't understand why humans seemed to distrust their hearts so much.</p><p>Toothless huffed as he made his way back over to the fire and curled up beside it. He closed his heavy eyelids. Hiccup followed him. With a heavy sigh, Hiccup sat down beside the dragon and leaned his back up against his side. He lifted his eyes to Merida across the way. She still sat quietly staring into the fire seemingly in deep thought and he wondered what could be weighing on her mind. He turned his eyes back to the fire and sighed.</p><p>A gust of wind blew through the opening of the cave once more causing him to shiver slightly. This did not go unnoticed by Merida. She stood without a word and made her way over to him. She took the blanket from around her and held it out to Hiccup. He looked up at her curiously.</p><p>"I'm fine," he replied, "you keep it."</p><p>"I saw ye shiver," Merida replied skeptically, "go on take it." Hiccup still refused.</p><p>"I'll not have ye freeze to death because ye gave me yer only blanket," Merida replied insistently. Hiccup continued to gaze up at her, still refusing to take the blanket from her. Merida sighed as she smiled down at him.</p><p>"If it makes ye feel any better we could just share it," she replied simply, "it's big enough for the both of us." Hiccup smiled up at her in amusement as he took the blanket from her hand. He leaned forward and wrapped it around himself. He then held the other side of the blanket up, inviting her to sit beside him. She sat down next to him and he draped the other side of the blanket around her shoulder. Merida sighed in content as she leaned her head against his shoulder. Hiccup could feel his heart flutter as she sat so close beside him. As if by habit he leaned his head against the top of her's. The two sat quietly gazing at the fire both feeling completely content just being in each other's company.</p><p>Toothless opened his one eye slightly and peered in their direction. He smiled slightly to himself. He and Hiccup were connected on a deep spiritual level from day one, they were in tune with each other's thoughts and feelings which is why they made such a great team, and why the two were inseparable best friends. Toothless could sense Hiccup's contentment, and he knew it was because of Merida. Honestly as long as he'd known his rider, this was the most at ease he'd ever been. It seemed his rider had finally found his place. Now, if only Toothless could just help him to realize it.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Unexpected Dilemma</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 14</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>A distant voice echoed in the distance calling out Merida's name and arousing her from a deep sleep. Merida squeezed her eyes shut, reluctant to wake from her comfortable slumber. She pulled the blanket around herself a little tighter and leaned a little closer to the source of warmth beside her.</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>The voice called again, still from a fair distance but closer than before. Merida groaned. She didn't want to leave her bed. As she opened her eyes a small amount, beams of sunlight caused her to wince slightly as her eyes were unprepared for the brightness. She squeezed them shut once more as she rolled to her opposite side and she nestled herself even closer to the warm body beside her.</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>Reluctantly she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and yawned. She opened her eyes just slightly as her vision slowly adjusted to the light of day. As she groggily looked around, the bed beneath her moved as if the mattress had taken a deep breath causing her to furrow her brow in confusion. Suddenly a warm arm gently slid over her coming to rest across her shoulder and the body beside her let out a soft sigh. She lifted her head slightly as she opened her eyes a little more. She suddenly came to the realization that this was not her room, and the thing she laid upon was not her bed. Her eyes went wide as she found herself laying upon a sleeping Toothless, nestled up close against Hiccup's chest, and wrapped up loosely in his warm arms. He was fast asleep and his face was so close to hers that she could feel the warmth of his breath on her face each time he exhaled. Her heart froze at the sight.</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>The voice was closer now. Merida sat up with a start. "Oh no," she cried. Her sudden movement disturbed Hiccup and he sat up groggily as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He glanced over to see a panic stricken Merida.</p><p>"What's wrong," he asked still in a stupor, "what's happening?"</p><p>"Merida, where are you?" Hiccup straightened up at the sound of the voice calling Merida's name. Merida now recognized the voice as one of her brothers.</p><p>"I...I never went home," Merida replied in a panic, "we must've fallen asleep d-during the storm and...and I never went home!" She lept from her place beside him and frantically collected her bow and quiver.</p><p>"Oh...I've been late before," Merida continued, "but I...I've never not come home. My mum will hae my head fur sure!</p><p>"Merida...it...it's okay," Hiccup quickly stood from his place as he attempted to calm her, "j-just...calm down!"</p><p>"Ye don't understand," Merida quickly pulled her cloak over her head and pulled her hair out from beneath the hood, "they've come looking for me! If...if they find me here...with ye...and...and Toothless..." Toothless lifted his head groggily at the sound of his name and looked curiously back and forth between the two of them.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup interrupted, "I get it, I get it...b-but we haven't done anything wrong, i-if anything, your parents should be grateful t-that you were safe with me."</p><p>Merida looked at him as if he'd lost his mind.</p><p>"Hiccup have ye gone mad," she exclaimed, "y-yer a Viking, a...a banished one at that! A-and I...I was alone with ye, all night, without a chaperone! If...if my mum found out...it...it'd be the end of us, they'll lock ye away and I'd never be allowed to see ye again!"</p><p>"W-well...w-what about Toothless," Hiccup replied, "he was here too, doesn't he count as a chaperone?"</p><p>"Hiccup, this isn't a joke," Merida groaned, "this is serious!" She crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from him. Hiccup grabbed her by the arm quickly and gently pulled her back to him. She looked up at him with a frustrated expression on her face.</p><p>"Okay, look," he sighed as he gazed into her sky blue eyes, "I...I'm sorry, I know It's serious okay, I...I was just trying to lighten the mood...I'm sorry." Merida glared at him. Hiccup chuckled slightly.</p><p>"Do you forgive me," he asked with a sideways grin. Merida's eyes softened and she smiled slightly.</p><p>"Aye," she replied with a sigh, "so long as ye take this seriously. My mum will not take a viking's presence lightly. If she found out about ye, she'd hae ye punished to the extent of the law jus fur approaching me. I...I just coudnae bare it if something happened tae ye 'cause o' me, 'cause o' my mistake!" Hiccup nodded in understanding</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>Hiccup looked up in the direction from which the voice had come. They sounded as if they were even closer now. He turned back to Merida with a look of worry on his face. Merida gazed up at Hiccup for a long moment eyes wide with panic and almost frozen in place.</p><p>"Y-you need to go," he replied insistently. He took her by the hand and started to lead her toward the mouth of the cave, "y-you're in enough trouble as it is! We can just meet up tomorrow, same place as usual..."</p><p>Merida suddenly stopped walking, she stood firm in place, her feet not moving an inch. Hiccup paused and turned back to face her. She gazed up at him with a look of turmoil on her face, and her eyes looked slightly watery.</p><p>"Ye don't understand," she said in an emotion filled voice. Hiccup gazed at her in concern. She paused for a long moment as if contemplating her words.</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>She turned to the mouth of the cave at the sound of her brother's voice. She then turned back to Hiccup with a look of uncertainty on her face. Hiccup's heart froze at the sight of her nearly tear filled eyes. She looked as if she wanted to say something but she couldn't seem to find her words.</p><p>"What," he questioned. She gazed up at him in worry. She gulped slightly in nervousness.</p><p>"It's...it's just that I...I don't know that I'll be able to come back," she gulped as she continued to gaze at him. Hiccup felt his heart sink with her words.</p><p>"You think they won't let you leave the castle again," Hiccup questioned in a worried tone.</p><p>"I...I messed up Hiccup," she replied emotionally, "I...I broke the one rule my mum expects of me to keep, I broke her trust, she'll never forgive me." Hiccup squeezed her hand a little tighter. He sighed heavily as he gazed at her longingly once again.</p><p>"Of course she'll forgive you Merida," he replied softly in reassurance, "she's your mom. She might be really angry right now, but she's still your family. She won't be mad forever." Merida nodded as she thought over his words.</p><p>"Aye, that may be," she replied, "but she'll still ground me for this, probably indefinitely!"</p><p>"It's okay," he replied softly, "I can wait." He gazed at her for a long moment as if carefully weighing his words. She continued to gaze up at him, silently wishing he'd tell her whatever it was that was so obviously weighing on his mind.</p><p>"I...I don't know how long it will be," Merida replied, "before I'll be free to come back." Hiccup nodded in understanding but he still remained silent.</p><p>They stood there for a long moment gazing at one another, feeling awkward and torn at the same time. Merida didn't want to leave, and Hiccup didn't want to let her go. But neither of them seemed to have the courage to tell the other how they felt. Hiccup took another step closer to her. Absentmindedly, he reached up to brush the unruly red curls away from her face. His hand came to rest on her cheek as he gazed into her sparkling blue eyes. He could feel his heart racing as he gazed at her. He wanted so badly to kiss her, and to tell her how he felt, but he hadn't the courage to do so.</p><p>Merida just gazed up at him. The touch of his hand on her face sent chills through her and she wished he would do something other then gaze at her that way. His hesitation only caused her to question her feelings even more.</p><p>"Merida!" At the sound of the voice, they both simultaneously turned to the mouth of the cave. Merida sighed as she turned back to him.</p><p>"I...I have to go," Merida said. Hiccup nodded as he reluctantly dropped his hand from her face and he backed away slightly. Merida dropped her eyes from his and turned away with a heavy sigh. She quickly headed toward the mouth of the cave.</p><p>"Merida wait," Hiccup called out. She quickly turned back to face him.</p><p>"H-how will I know," he stuttered, "h-how long before I...I can see you again. H-how will I know when y-you can come back." Merida thought for a moment.</p><p>"Um...uh...maybe, come to the place where ye first took me home," she replied, "i-if I can, I'll meet ye there...if not...I...I'll find some way to tell ye."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied with a nod, "I'll be there tomorrow morning, if you're there great!" Merida nodded. "If not," he sighed, "I...I'll just try again the next day." Merida smiled slightly as she nodded in agreement. She gazed at him for a moment longer as she paused by the mouth of the cave. She smiled up at him.</p><p>"Stay out of trouble," she smirked. Hiccup grinned at her.</p><p>"You too princess," he replied.</p><p>"Merida!"</p><p>She turned and quickly ran out of the cave. "I'm here," he heard her call out, "I'm here."</p><p>Hiccup crept to the mouth of the cave making sure to remain hidden in the shadows. He saw her walking away with a boy no more than ten years old. He was only a tad shorter than her with the same bright red curls piled on the top of his head, though trimmed short and only slightly less unruly than Merida's. Hiccup chuckled slightly. Initially when she had mentioned her brothers he had pictured them being older than her. He should have realized they'd be younger, as she was the next in line for the throne. He sighed heavily as he watched them, feeling quite bereft knowing he might not see her again for days. All he wanted to do was run to her and tell her all the feelings he had for her. But her warning still hung heavy on his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"Y-yer a Viking, a...a banished one at that! A-and I...I was alone with ye, all night, without a chaperone! If...if my mum found out...it...it'd be the end of us, they'll lock ye away and I'd never be allowed to see ye again!"</p><p>My mum will not take a viking's presence lightly. If she found out about ye, she'd hae ye punished to the extent of the law jus fur approaching me.</p><p>...</p><p>He was a Viking, and technically Berk was still an enemy of Dunbroch. He sighed again. Surely there must be something he could do to prove himself. Or some way for her mother and her people to see past the fact that he was a Viking. But even if he could convince them, he was still a Viking and she was still a princess. She was more than that, she was the future queen of Dunbroch. He didn't know if he even stood a chance with her to begin with.</p><p>As the two siblings disappeared from sight, Hiccup turned back into the cave with a sullen expression on his face. He looked up to see Toothless smirking at him.</p><p>"What," he questioned in annoyance. Toothless nodded in the direction Merida had gone and batted his eyes at Hiccup. Hiccup sighed heavily once again as he crossed his arms over his chest. Toothless nudged him insistently.</p><p>"Not now bud," Hiccup groaned. Toothless whined impatiently. He snorted at Hiccup in frustration. Hiccup ignored him and started to gather his belongings. Toothless huffed as he tried to think of a way to get Hiccup to listen to him. The dragon looked around anxiously for a moment. He turned quickly and pulled a stick from the burnt out fire and started frantically drawing in the dirt.</p><p>Once satisfied with his work, Toothless gently grabbed Hiccup by the sleeve and drug him over to his drawing, causing him to stumble forward and drop the blanket he was trying to fold.</p><p>"Now what bud," Hiccup groaned again. He turned his eyes reluctantly to Toothless' drawing.</p><p>There were two sloppy stick figures. One stood with arms crossed and a hook for one foot, the other with crazy scribbles for hair and seemed to be wearing a dress. Around them both was a large, very lopsided heart. Hiccup's heart froze for a brief moment at the sight, then he sighed heavily and rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Don't be ridiculous," Hiccup groaned as he crossed his arms over his chest. Toothless grumbled at Hiccup.</p><p>"Come on Toothless" Hiccup replied, "first of all, that looks nothing like me!" Toothless raised an eyebrow at him. Suddenly realizing that he was standing in the same position as the drawing, Hiccup quickly uncrossed his arms.</p><p>"A-and second I told you already, it...it's not like that with Merida!" Hiccup turned and walked away. Toothless glared at him. He swung his tail forward and whacked Hiccup on the side of the head. Hiccup turned to the dragon in anger.</p><p>"What the," he groaned, "what the hell was that for ya stupid dragon!" Toothless glared at him. He took the stick and drew a heart on the one-legged stick figure's chest, and then drew a line from the heart to the stick figure girl. Toothless then pointed to Hiccup's actual chest and then pointed to the stick figure girl again. Hiccup sighed heavily and dropped his arms at his side in defeat. He groaned in annoyance as he gazed sullenly at Toothless.</p><p>"Is it that obvious," Hiccup questioned. Toothless shook his head with a sarcastic expression on his face.</p><p>"Fine," Hiccup huffed, "fine! I...I like her okay...I...I mean I...I really, really like her. Are ya happy now?" Toothless smirked. Hiccup began to pace as he continued to vent his feelings to Toothless.</p><p>"I...I think I...I might even be falling for her bud," Hiccup admitted, "I...I mean, my heart races whenever I'm near her and...and I can't think straight and sometimes when I'm close to her it...it feels like I...I can't breathe...I just...I get so nervous that I just I...I don't know what to do or...or say." Toothless smiled in Hiccup's direction.</p><p>"And when we're apart I...I just...I can't stop thinking about her, ya know. I mean, how could I, she...she's amazing, she's kind and...and smart, fun and brave," Hiccup continued to pace, "and...and she's so damn beautiful, I mean that hair...a-and her eyes...and when she smiles..." Hiccup sighed dreamily.</p><p>"I...I could just stare at her all day if I could get away with it!" Hiccup sighed heavily again as he rubbed the back of his neck.</p><p>"I mean...she...she's perfect...and...and I...I'm just a screw up." Hiccup sighed heavily as he dropped his eyes to the ground.</p><p>"She deserves way better than me bud," Hiccup said solemnly, "besides I would just mess it all up, like I always do. I mean that's the last thing I'd want to happen." He sunk to the ground and sighed as he sat before the dragon.</p><p>"Besides," Hiccup replied, "she wouldn't go for a guy like me, I...I mean she's royalty for crying out loud! I mean, you heard her, I'm just a...a Viking, and a banished one at that!" Toothless sighed in slight annoyance. Could his rider really be this blind? Toothless took the stick and began to draw again. Hiccup looked on in curiosity as Toothless drew a heart over stick figure Merida's chest and then a line pointing to stick figure Hiccup.</p><p>"You...you think s-she likes me too," Hiccup questioned, "l-like the way that I like her?" Toothless nodded insistently.</p><p>"No," Hiccup replied instantly, "we're just friends...that's it, I...I mean, there's no way..." Hiccup immediately tried to dismiss the dragon's claim but the more he thought about it, the more he wondered if it could possibly be true.</p><p>Maybe he had spent so much time overthinking his own feelings for Merida that he hadn't noticed Merida's feelings for him. Had he missed something she'd done or said? He could feel his heart begin to race at the very thought of it. He tried to go over everything in his mind.</p><p>They had a few close moments here and there, and there were times he thought maybe she did feel something for him. But she had never given him any definite indication that her feelings could be anything more than friendship. At least none that he had noticed. She had complimented him many times, but that's what friends do too. She had told him multiple times that she was glad to have a 'friend' like him. But then she had never been offended whenever he took her hand and she allowed him to touch her face without backing away. They joked around a lot and teased each other like friends tend to do, but sometimes it did feel more like flirting. His mind drifted to the past day.</p><p>...</p><p>He held the other side of the blanket up, inviting her to sit beside him. She sat down next to him and he draped the other side of the blanket around her shoulder. Merida sighed in content as she leaned her head against his shoulder. Hiccup could feel his heart flutter as she sat so close beside him. Without thought he leaned his head against the top of hers. The two sat quietly gazing at the fire both feeling completely content just being in each other's company.</p><p>...</p><p>The simple memory made him smile. He had never felt so content, so at ease as he seemed to be with her. He was happy just having her near him. But he never thought about the fact that she had felt so content with him that she hadn't even thought twice about being so close to him. In fact she had laid her head on his shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world to her, as if she were right where she belonged.</p><p>He sighed heavily again as he sat upon the cave floor in front of Toothless and stared down at the dragon's crude drawing. Just the thought of her having feelings for him caused his heart to flutter, but it also caused a pit to form in his stomach.</p><p>He liked her, he more than liked her, he might even have been starting to love her, but that's what scared him most of all.</p><p>He wanted a chance with her more than anything but he didn't feel like he was good enough for her. He was happy to be her friend, to just have a reason to be near her, to have her to talk to and laugh with. He didn't want to jeopardize their friendship by trying to be more, like he had with Astrid. Hiccup's mind flashed back to his own advice in their previous conversation.</p><p>...</p><p>"Well I know that if I fall in love it will end that way because of what I am and what I'm meant to be," Merida said, "so why even try if heartbreak is inevitable?"</p><p>"No, you don't know that," Hiccup replied, "you're just assuming the worst case scenario. For all you know the person you fall in love with could be accepted by your entire kingdom. I mean, wouldn't that be better then just settling for someone because you're afraid of the outcome?" Merida huffed in frustration. She turned her eyes back to the trail ahead of them.</p><p>"The problem is you'll never know if you never take a chance."</p><p>...</p><p>He had advised her to take a chance. He had told her that he would rather fall in love even if it ended than to not have love at all. And yet here he was still just as afraid of love as he was before and still just as reluctant to take a chance as she was. He felt that he would rather remain her friend just to keep her in his life, then take a chance as something more and loose her forever if things didn't work out.</p><p>...</p><p>Dunbroch castle</p><p>"Honestly Merida," Elinor bellowed, "I don't know what's gotten into you lately, being late is one thing, not coming home at all is unacceptable!"</p><p>"I just got caught in the storm mother," she replied, "I took refuge in a cave, I didn't mean to fall asleep...it...it just happened." Elinor crossed her arms over her chest and stared at her daughter incredulously. In all her years, Elinor had not known her daughter to be irresponsible. Headstrong and difficult yes, but Merida was never irresponsible. She had taken notice over the past week that Merida had been acting slightly different. She was staying out till nearly sunset everyday that she'd been allowed to leave the castle walls and when she was at home she was often distracted. Clearly something was weighing on Merida's mind, but thus far she had not spoken a word of it to Elinor nor anyone else. Elinor sighed in frustration.</p><p>Though their relationship had gotten better over these past five years, Merida still was not as open with her mother as she wished her to be. Though they were closer than they had ever been there was still much that Merida refused to share with her. It was discouraging to Elinor to say the least. The one thing she had always longed for was a closer mother and daughter bond.</p><p>"Merida, I believe you," Elinor replied with a sigh, "I do, but this has to stop!" Yer not a wee lass anymore, ye have responsibilities as a princess and a future queen. Ye simply can't be running off every chance ye get. Yer 21 years of age now, it's time for ye to start acting like the lady and queen yer meant to be."</p><p>"Mum," Merida groaned.</p><p>"Not to mention the danger ye put yer self in staying out alone the entire night." Merida dropped her eyes to the floor and sighed in discontent.</p><p>"Now I've warned ye time and time again of the dangers that may lurk in the woods after dark. Any number of ill-fated things can await a young lady alone in the woods!"</p><p>"But mum," Merida groaned, "I wasn't alo...I...I mean I...I w-was perfectly safe... believe me, nothing would have happened to me!"</p><p>"Aye, ye were safe this time, but what about next time, or the time after that?" Merida if ye don't start to heed my warnings a-and take them seriously; if ye continue to throw caution to the wind, I...I'm hesitant to even let ye leave the castle walls without a chaperone," Elinor went on.</p><p>"No," Merida exclaimed. Her mother stared at her after her outburst.</p><p>"I...I don't need a chaperone to...to go riding," Merida huffed, "I'm perfectly capable of defending myself if need be!"</p><p>"Be that as it may," Elinor replied firmly, "until ye have restored my faith in ye a-and proven to me that ye can be responsible, I may consider appointing ye a guard to keep ye safe! At the very least they will remind ye of yer curfew!"</p><p>"But mum," Merida started, "I know I've been late before but this is the one and only time I've ever done this, and it was an accident! I...I do take responsibility for my actions! I swear it won't happen again, but I don't need a guard! I...I haven't needed a guard in the past 6 years, and I don't need one now!"</p><p>"Merida," Elinor replied in frustration.</p><p>"Mum please," Merida interrupted, "It's the only time I have to myself, the only time I...I can just be me and not the future queen of Dunbroch! I ride to be free from the palace, h-how can I do that with a guard following me around!"</p><p>"But you are the future queen Merida," Elinor replied, "it's who ye are, who ye've always been. There is no separating the two. Ye can't run away from yer fate." Merida crossed her arms over her chest and sighed heavily. Her mother's words cut through her like a knife. She had spent the majority of her life trying to escape what she was, what she was meant to be. She had always wanted nothing more than to be free of her title, to be free to live as she pleased without expectation or obligation to anyone but herself. The older she got the more she began to realize that she couldn't avoid her fate forever. The truth in her mother's words only resigned her to the fact that her time of running was coming to an end, soon she would be expected to let her childish fantasies of freedom go and be forced to take up her birthright. Just as her grandmother had been thrust into a loveless marriage for the sake of her crown so would Merida be thrust onto the throne.</p><p>"Ye'll be grounded the next three days," Elinor said firmly.</p><p>"Three days," Merida whined, "Mum, I...I take full responsibility for my actions...but three days!"</p><p>"And extra princess lessons," Elinor replied, "to refresh ye on the responsibilities of a princess." Merida groaned as she threw her arms at her sides and balled her fingers into tight fists.</p><p>"But mum..." Merida groused.</p><p>"Not another word, Merida," Elinor replied, "there will be no further discussion on the matter today." Merida huffed impatiently.</p><p>"Now I want ye to go to yer room and get cleaned up," Elinor said, "I'll not have ye looking a shambles as we see off our guest."</p><p>"Lord Dingwall is leaving," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Aye," Elinor replied, "this afternoon."</p><p>"At least one good thing could come of this day," Merida grumbled under her breath.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor scolded.</p><p>"What was he here for anyway," Merida questioned. Elinor gazed at her daughter for a long moment, reluctant to speak of the Lord's proposal.</p><p>"It's nothing dear," Elinor replied, "we just discussed some matters regarding the future of Dunbroch...I...I will fill ye in later." Merida gazed at her mother warily.</p><p>"Go on then," Elinor said firmly, "brunch will be in an hour and then we will see Clan Dingwall off.</p><p>"Aye mum," Merida replied as she turned and headed to the door of the study.</p><p>Elinor sighed as Merida left the room. It was clear to her that Merida was hiding something, that something wasn't completely adding up. She wondered why after all they had overcome, Merida still felt the need to keep secrets from her. She hoped Merida would open up and let her know what had been taking up so much of her time as of late. The queen sighed heavily. On top of everything else she still needed to discuss with Merida the proposal of the Lords, a task she was not eager to do.</p><p>...</p><p>Merida entered her room quickly. It took everything in her not to slam the door shut behind her. She leaned her back against the door and sighed heavily. She was angry, not just with her mother, but also with herself. If only she had just come home, if only she hadn't fallen asleep, her mother would've been none the wiser about her spending so much time away from the castle. Now because of her blunder, she might never be able to leave the castle again without a guard, which now meant that seeing Hiccup had just gotten that much harder. She groaned in frustration as she flopped back upon her bed and gazed blankly up at the canopy above her.</p><p>"What am I gonna do," she groaned. She could feel her stomach tying up in knots at the thought of not being able to see Hiccup, not just for the next three days, but possibly indefinitely. If her mother remained firm in appointing her a guard, it would be near impossible for her to meet up with Hiccup.</p><p>She huffed in frustration as she lifted herself from her bed and gazed blankly around her room. She stood and made her way over to her balcony door. She opened the door and made her way out onto the balcony and gazed longingly in the direction of the forest. She sighed heavily once again as she thought of Hiccup.</p><p>It had only been a few hours since she'd left him behind in the cave but she missed him already. The thought of not being able to see him or talk to him for days made her heart feel heavy. She knew her mother was only acting in her best interest and that she was legitimately concerned for her safety. She understood where her mother was coming from, but she just had to find some way to change her mother's mind. She thought heavily on the matter as she gazed into the distance.</p><p>She supposed the only way around this drawback was to go through it. If she just accepted her mother's terms without complaint, and showed her she could be responsible, perhaps her mother would reconsider the necessity of a guard. Of course the down side of that would be that she'd have to accept not seeing Hiccup for an indefinite amount of time. And the drawback of that, of course, was that Hiccup was the chief of Berk. He had said he would wait to see her, but how long would he be willing to do that. Like her, he also had responsibilities to his people. He simply couldn't stay in Dunbroch forever. Merida sighed as she stepped back into her room. They would just have to play it by ear for the time being. Right now she would just try to focus on finding a way to get a message to Hiccup.</p><p>...</p><p>Eret</p><p>Eret was not just a dragon trapper, he was a skilled dragon tracker as well. It had been a few years since he had been able to put his tracking skills to good use and, despite the reason, he was looking forward to brushing up on his semi-neglected skills.</p><p>Tracking Hiccup and Toothless would not be too difficult a challenge. Having accompanied him on a few of his scouting missions, before their falling out, Eret knew a thing or two about Hiccup's habits and his routines. Hiccup was nothing if not predictable. Finding them was the least of Eret's concerns, it was what to expect after he found them that worried him.</p><p>It was no secret that the two had been at odds ever since Eret and Astrid's relationship was made public. It was an unfortunate repercussion to an uncontrollable situation. Eret didn't plan to fall for Astrid, it just happened. And he didn't think in all his years that someone like Astrid would ever fall for him. He certainly didn't come between Hiccup and Astrid on purpose, as Hiccup had accused him of. Even though Hiccup had somewhat come to terms with what really happened, he still disliked Eret and he was certainly not afraid to let him know it.</p><p>It hadn't always been that way, there was a time when Eret was considered Hiccup's right hand man. It was an honor for Eret that he took seriously and still did till this day. They had started out as enemies. But even after all Eret had done, Hiccup had still given him a chance to redeem himself. He had welcomed him into the Hairy Hooligan clan, and allowed him to be a dragon rider, he had even trusted him with his late father's dragon. Of all the vikings in Berk, even Astrid, Hiccup had been the first to trust him, and the first to consider him a friend. It took some time to gain the trust of the other riders, but thanks to Hiccup they had all eventually accepted him. This is what made what happened between them so regrettable.</p><p>He did not regret being with Astrid, but he did still feel guilty for hurting Hiccup. Though Eret and Astrid had not betrayed Hiccup as he believed they had, Eret had still bore the brunt of Hiccup's anger. Ever since Hiccup had discovered he and Astrid's relationship, Eret had been the one he blamed. Even to this day, even though Hiccup claimed to have gotten past it all, he still was not quiet about his ill feelings toward Eret. In Hiccup's mind it seemed that Eret had betrayed their friendship and Hiccup seemed to regret having ever put his trust in him. This hurt Eret because he looked up to Hiccup, he respected him, and he was probably the closest thing Eret had ever had to a brother.</p><p>Eret would never change the outcome. He was happy finally after a difficult life. Astrid was everything he had always wanted. He had finally found his place with her. He'd found the home and the family that he'd never dreamed he would ever have. But his happy ending was bittersweet because in truth the only reason he had everything he wanted was because Hiccup had given him a chance. If Hiccup didn't first trust him then Astrid would have never trusted him and would never have given him a chance to begin with. The truth was he owed everything about his life now to Hiccup. The circumstances were unfortunate, and the cost seemed unfair, but he couldn't regret his decision to be with Astrid. Despite everything he still wished to make amends with Hiccup.</p><p>Perhaps that is why he was so willing to come to Dunbroch in search of Hiccup to begin with. Not just for Astrid's sake, but for his own. If Hiccup was in trouble, perhaps Eret could prove himself by helping him out. If Hiccup was not in trouble then at the very least they could hash out their differences, maybe even put an end to this regrettable feud.</p><p>He and Fishlegs had arrived in Dunbroch in the late afternoon and it didn't take long for Eret to pick up Toothless' trail. They had landed at the highest point in DunBroch, to survey the land just as Hiccup would have done. It was there that Eret had discovered a single night fury scale, proof that they had been there. Fishlegs had mentioned some ring of stones that had held interest for Hiccup but he couldn't recall the exact location. By the looks of the dense forest, it seemed the search for the stones would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Especially without even a general location. It was likely that Hiccup and Toothless must have searched for the place on foot.</p><p>So the duo began their search for their lost chief at the base of the hanging valley on which they had landed. It was there that Eret found a dragon foot print that seemed to be headed south into the forest.</p><p>They headed south and eventually stumbled upon a seemingly abandoned camp site. Upon closer inspection it seemed only recently abandoned. It seemed that they had missed them, maybe only by a day or two. Eret and Fishlegs dismounted their dragons and began to look around for any evidence that this was indeed Hiccup's camp and did not belong to some random local.</p><p>"Eret," Fishlegs called out, "I found something." Eret headed over to Fish. He stood before a large indentation in the grass, as if a large heavy animal had laid their and flattened the grass in that area, curled up in the way Toothless always slept. Eret smiled.</p><p>"Found you," he muttered. But Hiccup had obviously not been back to his camp all night by the looks of it so where had he gone?</p><p>"I think we should hang out here Fish," Eret said, "I'm certain this is Hiccup's camp and he'll come back to it sooner or later."</p><p>"Maybe he's still looking for the stones," Fish replied.</p><p>"Yeah, what's the deal with these stones anyway," Eret asked, "why's he so interested in em'." Fishlegs shrugged.</p><p>"I think it's because they held some kind of significance for his great great grandfather," he replied, "that and he's trying to figure out what his dream is about."</p><p>"So you do know about his dream," Eret smirked. Fishlegs gulped as he realized what he'd said.</p><p>"Don't worry Fish," Eret said with a slight chuckle, "Astrid told me already, Valka told her. We weren't sure if you knew about it though."</p><p>"What did Valka tell Astrid exactly," Fishlegs questioned.</p><p>"Not much," Eret replied, "just that Hiccup had some dreams about this place and they involved a mysterious girl." Fish nodded as Eret spoke.</p><p>"It seems Valka believes that Hiccup was called here somehow, that he's being drawn here for a reason. She thinks him being here will help him find what he's always been looking for," Eret continued, "from what Astrid said, it seems that Valka has it in her head that Hiccup may find his true love here."</p><p>Fishlegs nodded as he listened.</p><p>"Well, Hiccup thinks the girl in his dream is the spirit of his great great grandfather's lost true love," Fish replied, "he believes that she's calling to him to find out what really happened to them."</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup hours later</p><p>When Hiccup finally got back to his camp something felt off. He thought nothing of it at first until he had noticed the campfire smoldering as if had been put out recently. He looked around suspiciously for a moment before dismounting Toothless.</p><p>"Hold up bud," Hiccup said. He dismounted and pat the dragon on the side of the neck.</p><p>He leaned close to the dragon for a moment.</p><p>"I'm gonna check it out first," he whispered, "watch my back." Toothless nodded subtly. He knelt beside the fire and reached out to touch the logs with his hand. He pulled it back quickly taking note that it was still hot and most likely put out within the hour. He stood and glanced around the area, scanning for anything irregular or out of place.</p><p>He wondered for a moment if Merida had been there but his gut was telling him this was not her. As he looked around he thought he heard a rustling in the trees to the left of him. He glanced subtly in the direction trying not to let on that he was suspicious. He walked back toward Toothless and made a gesture with his hand to which Toothless nodded in response.</p><p>"We're good bud," Hiccup said out loud, "looks like we may need some more wood to start a fire though." Hiccup patted the dragon on the neck again but gave him a subtle look and nodded in the direction that the rustling in the trees had been. Toothless grunted in understanding</p><p>"Why don't you catch us some fish," he said, "I'll go get the wood." The two walked in separate directions.</p><p>After about ten minutes or so a cloaked figure came from the brush and stepped from the shadows and toward the campsite. They snuck forward trying not to make a sound and being very careful of where they stepped. The figure paused for a moment then turned and seemed to motion to a second party to wait. The figure looked about curiously and started walking in the direction that Hiccup had gone. After a few steps the stranger stopped in their tracks as Toothless stepped forth from the brush in front of him, growling in his direction. The stranger held his hands up in surrender and began to back away. Suddenly arms grabbed the stranger from behind and the stranger felt a blade pressed firmly against his throat. Hiccup stood behind the man who was a tad taller than him and much more muscular. Hiccup held him tightly around the neck with his dragon blade pressed against his jugular, close enough that it was beginning to leave an indent in his flesh. The stranger was certain that if Hiccup were to put even a tiny bit more pressure to his throat with the blade, that he'd have surely drawn some blood. The stranger grabbed Hiccup's arm and tried to pull it away from his throat.</p><p>"What do you want," Hiccup growled. The person paused and took a deep breath, as he continued to try to force the blade away. He gripped Hiccup's arm and struggled against him. Suddenly he pulled Hiccup's arm away and twisted out of his hold, he twisted the dragon blade from Hiccup's grip and backed away. He stood in a defensive stance with Hiccup's blade in hand and pointed in his direction. They stood glaring at one another for what seemed a long moment, each trying to anticipate the others next move. Hiccup kept his eyes on the dragon blade in the strangers hand. Without a word the stranger stood up straight and tossed the dragon blade to the ground. Hiccup didn't stop to think he ran for the stranger and tackled him to the ground. He pinned him quickly and pulled the dagger from his ankle holster and pressed it to the man's throat again.</p><p>"W-wait," the stranger yelled out, "Hiccup! I don't want to fight you! Stop!" Hiccup's eyes widened in sudden recognition. He reached down and yanked the hood from the stranger's face, revealing none other than Eret.</p><p>"Eret," he questioned. He sat up quickly, pulled his dagger away from Eret's throat and removed himself from his fellow Viking. He stood quickly and offered Eret a hand. Eret took his hand and allowed him to help him to his feet. Hiccup just glared at him as he stood.</p><p>"What are you doing here Eret," Hiccup questioned in aggravation.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Letting go</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 15</p><p>"What are you doing here Eret," Hiccup questioned in annoyance.</p><p>"Astrid was worried," Eret replied, "you've been gone more than a week...we didn't know if you ran into trouble during your scouting mission."</p><p>"Great," Hiccup huffed, "and of all the people to send after me, of course she sends you."</p><p>"She didn't send me," Eret replied, "I offered to come." Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Look we weren't sure if you were captured or worse, we didn't know if this place was hostile or not. I offered...because I thought it'd be too dangerous. I...I didn't want her to come..."</p><p>"Too dangerous," Hiccup huffed, "for Astrid Hofferson." Eret just gazed at Hiccup.</p><p>"And you actually convinced her to stay in Berk and allow you to come after me on your own," Hiccup replied sarcastically.</p><p>Eret crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow at Hiccup.</p><p>"You know as well as I that there is no convincing her of anything," Eret replied, "we decided together that it was best that she stay and I go."</p><p>"Right," Hiccup replied flatly as he slipped his dagger back in its holster.</p><p>"Look she...she has her reasons," Eret replied cryptically. Hiccup turned to him in curiosity. He could see a look of genuine concern on Eret's face and maybe a bit of remorse.</p><p>"What reasons," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"That is none of your business," Eret replied firmly. Hiccup glared at him.</p><p>"Well as you can see, I'm perfectly fine here on my own," Hiccup replied haughtily, "not captured, and not in danger, so you can just run on back to Astrid and tell her to mind her own business." Hiccup turned his back on Eret and started walking back to his camp.</p><p>"Come on Hic," Eret replied.</p><p>"How did you even find this place," Hiccup nearly spat.</p><p>"I had a little help," Eret replied. Suddenly a deep growl and a high pitched scream rang through the trees. Both men simultaneously ran in the direction of the scream.</p><p>"Hey," the voice yelled out, "it's me Toothless, it's me, it's Fish we're friends remember!" When they reached Toothless, they saw Fish standing before him and patting him on the nose. Hiccup crossed his arms and glared at him.</p><p>"I should have known," Hiccup said flatly. At that moment Fishlegs looked up at the two men.</p><p>"Oh hey Hic," Fish said sheepishly as he waved. Hiccup rolled his eyes and groaned as he walked forward. Eret just grinned and followed after him.</p><p>"So, instead of stalling, you decide to lead them right to me," Hiccup said in annoyance.</p><p>"I tried," Fish replied, "but you know Astrid, she...she's terrifying when she is interrogating you!" Hiccup rolled his eyes and pushed his way past Fish. He walked over to the campfire and lit it with his dragon blade, then sat down upon a log beside it. Eret and Fish followed after him, sitting on a log across from him.</p><p>"Not that I don't appreciate the company guys," Hiccup groaned, "but you really should just head back to Berk."</p><p>"Why's that Hic," Eret questioned, "what are you up to here anyway?" Hiccup glared at him.</p><p>"What do you care," Hiccup spat, "I told you this is my business."</p><p>"Yeah well, the acting Chief cares,"Eret replied, "and she wants to know what your up to!"</p><p>"That nice," Hiccup replied, "but the acting Chief is not the Chief, I am, and I don't have to answer to her!" Eret crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Hiccup.</p><p>"Oh I see," Eret replied in aggravation, "you're Chief when it suits you."</p><p>"If I wanted her to know," Hiccup went on, "I'd have told her myself, I don't need you acting as a mediator between me and Astrid."</p><p>"I'm not acting as a mediator," Eret replied, "I'm just doing what she asked me to do, she wanted to make sure you were okay, that nothing bad happened."</p><p>"Well then you've done your job, you came, I'm fine," Hiccup replied as he quickly stood from his place and began to walk past Eret, "you don't need to know why I'm here, but you do need to go!"</p><p>Eret put a hand firmly on Hiccup's shoulder before he could pass him and forcefully pushed him back.</p><p>"Why don't you stop treating me and Astrid like we are your enemies," Eret said firmly, "I mean we were friends once Hic, despite our falling out I still care about you and so does Astrid. We were legitimately worried that something bad might have happened to you."</p><p>"Yeah well, guilt will do that to you I guess," Hiccup spat.</p><p>"Are you ever going stop punishing her for what happened," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Me," Hiccup laughed, "Ya know if she cared so much, I would think she would come here herself and not send you!"</p><p>"What and leave the village without a Chief," Eret questioned, "Astrid is not as flippant about being Chief as you are, she takes it seriously!"</p><p>"She could have left the village in my mother's hands," Hiccup said.</p><p>"What's wrong with you Hic," Eret questioned, "Astrid is doing you a favor by taking on your duties every time you decide to fly off on a whim! And not once have you ever shown her even an ounce of gratitude!"</p><p>"Are you kidding," Hiccup replied, "Ya know this all has absolutely nothing to do with her, or you!"</p><p>"Really," Eret replied unconvinced, "so running off while she and I were on our honeymoon and staying gone well after we got back had nothing to do with us?"</p><p>Hiccup glared at Eret. The absolute last thing he wanted to deal with today was Eret's smug accusations. He had enough on his mind to sort through. This altercation was both unwelcome and unwanted.</p><p>"You know what Eret," he nearly growled,</p><p>"I don't have to explain myself to you or her or anyone else for that matter! The last I checked the world didn't revolve around you and Astrid. What I do, and why I do it has nothing to do with either of you and as far as I'm concerned it's none of your business!"</p><p>"I hate to break it to you Hic," Eret replied, "but you all but made it our business when you ran off and didn't tell anyone where you were going or how to find you!"</p><p>"Really," Hiccup questioned angrily, "did it ever occur to either of you that I didn't want to be found?" Eret crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Hiccup.</p><p>"You are a selfish prick, you know that," Eret replied.</p><p>"Me," Hiccup replied, "I'm the selfish one...Tell me Eret, how selfish is it to go after your best friend's girlfriend behind his back?"</p><p>"And there it is," Eret replied smugly, "the whole reason for all of this."</p><p>"You're full of shit Eret," Hiccup huffed.</p><p>"Come on Hic," Eret replied, "do you really expect me to believe that your running off had absolutely nothing to do with me and Astrid?"</p><p>"Ya know Eret," Hiccup said as glared at his former friend, "I actually don't care what you believe. If you feel guilty about what you did, then that's on you! Leave me out of it!"</p><p>"I don't feel guilty Hiccup," Eret replied, "because I didn't do anything wrong!"</p><p>"I trusted you Eret," Hiccup spat, "I gave you a chance to redeem yourself, I trusted you with my father's dragon, you were my friend, and you repaid me by coming between me and Astrid." Eret shot him an angry gaze.</p><p>"First of all," Eret replied, "I didn't come between you and Astrid, you did that all on your own!"</p><p>"Me," Hiccup scoffed, "we were fine until you started butting in!"</p><p>"Fine," Eret repeated with a surprised expression, "you weren't fine Hiccup...do you even know what you put her through?" Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest as he glared back at Eret.</p><p>"She loved you, she would have done anything for you," Eret continued, "she was there for you and all you ever did was push her away, or run off without her. She came to me only to talk about you, to...to get what was bothering her off her chest. She came to me for advice, because we were friends and she didn't know how to help you...neither of us did. But she still wanted things to work out with you." With arms still crossed, Hiccup gazed blankly at the ground as Eret spoke.</p><p>"She held out as long as she could Hiccup," Eret continued, "but you just kept her at arms length no matter what she did. It broke her heart to let you go, but you broke it more when you were together, by leaving her behind, and shutting her out. She just couldn't wait on you forever, it wasn't fair to her."</p><p>"Fair," Hiccup growled, "you want to know what really isn't fair Eret? How about your best friend stealing your girlfriend!"</p><p>"Did you you even hear word I've said? Hiccup, when are you going to get it through your thick skull, I never went after Astrid," Eret replied in frustration, "and despite what you think I didn't steal her from you. I...I always liked Astrid, but I didn't start to have real feelings for her till long after she left you. When you were together she only ever confided in me as a friend. I never took advantage of that. My feelings didn't change until after she ended things with you." Eret sighed.</p><p>"And even then I tried to ignore them, but over time my feelings grew and before I knew it I'd fallen for her. I...I never meant for it to happen," Eret continued, "it just did. I didn't have much say in the matter." Hiccup huffed in frustration. He felt fed up and his mind was clouded in anger. All he wanted was to walk away from this argument, to clear his head. Without a word Hiccup huffed as he turned and walked away.</p><p>"Hey where are you going," Eret called out.</p><p>"None of your business," Hiccup yelled back without turning around.</p><p>"Go on then Hic," Eret yelled in frustration, "run off like you always do!"</p><p>—</p><p>Hiccup let Eret's voice fall into the background as he walked away into the woods with Toothless following after him. With little thought and little care to where he was going, Hiccup trudged deeper into the quickly darkening forest. He muttered to himself angrily under his breath as he continued to walk. He was trying his best to sort through his clouded thoughts, but the more he thought about it the more complicated everything seemed to be. Eret was absolutely the last person he had anticipated coming after him, and the absolute last person he wanted to deal with today.</p><p>The confrontation with Eret only brought up all the anger and frustration he'd had over the past few years and the many hurtful feelings that he had thought had been long behind him. This was by far a terrible ending to an already not so great day.</p><p>The majority of his stay in DunBroch he felt almost like himself again. All the depression from his father all the anger hurt and frustration over Astrid seemed so far behind him. Over the past week that he had spent with Merida, it had almost felt as if all those negative thoughts were a far off memory. She made him happy again, she took his negativity and turned it around, she made him see the things he had been through in a new positive light. Just being around her made him feel like he was a better person.</p><p>Now with Eret's arrival in Dunbroch, it was as if reality had come crashing back down around him. All the bitterness and anger came flooding back and he realized he was still a long way away from forgiving Astrid and Eret. He honestly didn't know if he ever could.</p><p>But Merida was like a light keeping that darkness at bay. When he was with her all he could see was that light. It was a light so bright it made all his shadows seem small. But now knowing he might not see her again soon made him feel as if he were abandoned in the darkness still grappling with all the towering shadows of his past. He audibly groaned as his thoughts began to overwhelm him.</p><p>As he trudged on, his mind became flooded with thoughts of Merida. He wondered what advice she would give him in this instance. She always seemed to help him see things clearer or even gave him another way to look at things. He thought back to what she had said in the cave.</p><p>...</p><p>Maybe it's time ye just...put all o' that negative stuff behind ye," she said, "and take pride in who ye are right now. Because who ye are right now is pretty impressive if ye ask me." She raised an eyebrow at him as she grinned.</p><p>He smiled warmly at her, though, once again at a loss for words. He felt a blush arise on his cheeks and he prayed it was hidden by the glow of the fire. It seemed she never could cease to amaze him with her thoughtful words.</p><p>"Maybe you're right," he replied as he looked at her once more, "maybe it is time I...I...moved on."</p><p>...</p><p>He sighed as her words ran through his brain. He had begun to realize that maybe he had spent so much time still caught up in the fear and anger and bitterness of his past that he now only saw the future through jaded eyes. His mind drifted to what Eret had said.</p><p>...</p><p>"First of all," Eret replied, "I didn't come between you and Astrid, you did that all on your own!"</p><p>"Me," Hiccup scoffed, "we were fine until you started butting in!"</p><p>"Fine," Eret repeated with a surprised expression, "you weren't fine Hiccup...do you even know what you put her through?</p><p>She loved you, she would have done anything for you. She was there for you and all you ever did was push her away, or run off without her. She came to me only to talk about you to...to get what was bothering her off her chest. She came to me for advice, because we were friends and she didn't know how to help you...neither of us did. But she still wanted things to work out with you."</p><p>...</p><p>What Eret had said struck a nerve in Hiccup. He had all but throw every mistake he had ever made with Astrid in his face, which hurt more than anything else. As much as he tried to convince himself and everyone else that he was over what happened, he had begun to realize that maybe his feelings weren't as resolved as he thought they were.</p><p>By all accounts Astrid was perfect. She was beautiful, smart, fearless, and a born leader. She had stood by him even when no one else did. She believed in him when he didn't believe in himself and she had tried to help him through one of the worst times in his life. He knew with certainty that if it hadn't been for her he wouldn't be the man he was today. He owed her so much. She should have been everything he ever wanted, but he just couldn't feel what he was supposed to feel. He sighed as his mother's words went through his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"I'm only saying that maybe it's not as complicated as you make it seem Hiccup," Valka replied.</p><p>"Oh, okay," Hiccup replied, "well by all means then, uncomplicate it for me."</p><p>"Okay," Valka replied, "put simply, you and Astrid were just not meant to be."</p><p>...</p><p>Maybe the simple truth was that he and Astrid were never meant to be. He didn't know why he didn't just let her go and move on from the start. He did care about her, that was not a question. Perhaps he feared hurting her. Perhaps he felt guilty that after all she had done for him, he still couldn't feel the way she needed him to. Maybe he held out a little too long hoping his feelings would change for the better.</p><p>But now as he thought about it, the thought occurred to him that perhaps Astrid was never meant to be with him in the first place. Maybe Astrid had found her true place with Eret. Perhaps it never really mattered if Hiccup had done anything differently.</p><p>Why then had he still so much anger and resentment when it came to Eret? Why couldn't he just let go of the past? He sighed heavily as he thought about it. Maybe it didn't matter how or when Astrid and Eret had come to be together. Maybe they were simply meant to be. Though it hurt to acknowledge, Eret and Astrid were the happiest they'd ever been when they were together. Perhaps what bothered him most of all was the fact that Eret could give Astrid what he never could.</p><p>As selfish as it now seemed, he was also afraid to loose Astrid completely. She was important to him, he relied on her and despite everything he still cared for her. Now seeing her with Eret, he felt as if he no longer had a place or a purpose in her life. He was slowly being fazed out, he was being replaced. He shook his head as he tried to sort through his conflicting and very confusing thoughts.</p><p>He groaned at his own selfish thoughts.</p><p>What did he expect to happen when they broke up? Did he just assume Astrid would be by his side weather they were together or not? Did he think she would never move on after him? How unfair was he to expect that of her? Had he really been that selfish? Or was it only the fact that the person she had moved on with was Eret? If it had been anyone else would it have bothered him so much?</p><p>Maybe it was because he still felt guilty about the way things ended and about how he had handled the break-up. Maybe he felt guilty about how he'd treated her since he found out about Eret. Maybe Eret was right, maybe he was nothing but an ungrateful, selfish prick.</p><p>He sighed heavily as he tried to push these conflicting thoughts to the back of his mind. As he continued on, his thoughts once again drifted to Merida.</p><p>For the past few days he had been longing to tell her how he was feeling, but his fear was stopping him from doing so. Maybe the reason he was so afraid to tell Merida how he felt was because he still needed to settle these unresolved feelings for Astrid. Maybe he just needed to make peace with her and Eret. Holding on to the anger and frustration of the past all this time only made him feel heavy, if he could just let go of everything he could be free to truly move on. But letting go of the past seemed an impossible task. He sighed heavily as he thought about it. It felt almost as if he were being pulled from opposite sides between his difficult past and the future he wished to have. Now more than ever, Hiccup wanted to move on. But more than anything else he wanted to take a chance with Merida.</p><p>Before long he inadvertently found himself in the very spot where Merida had told him to meet her. The place where he took her home the first day they met. His mind flashed back to the moment she stumbled into his arms. The first moment that it had crossed his mind that there could be something more to his feelings for her.</p><p>...</p><p>"Whoa," Hiccup chuckled as he caught her, "you okay?"</p><p>"Mmm hmm," She nodded as she gazed up at him. Hiccup just gazed back at her with those deep green eyes that reminded her so much of the Viking in her dream. His arms were wrapped around her waist and her hands were gripped onto his shoulders. For a moment the two stood holding on to each other and gazing into the others eyes. Their faces were only a few inches apart. They were so close that Hiccup could feel the warmth of her breath on his face. He could not explain the pull he felt toward her since the moment they met, and all he could think of in this moment was how much he longed to make those measly few inches disappear. And all he wanted to do was pull her to him and feel the softness of her lips pressed to his.</p><p>"Uh...okay," Hiccup said softly as he suddenly came to his senses. He let her go as he backed away, nervously rubbing the back of his neck</p><p>...</p><p>The memory sent chills down his spine and he felt a sudden overwhelming need to be with her. He wondered why after only such a short time of knowing her, that his feelings already felt so strong. He longed to just see her beautiful face, and just to be close to her. He longed for just the comforting touch of her hand in his.</p><p>Hiccup paused and turned to Toothless.</p><p>"God I...I just want to see Merida bud," Hiccup sighed, "I just want to talk to her a-and hear her voice." Toothless grinned at him.</p><p>"I don't know what to do," Hiccup groaned as he lay his head against the dragon's.</p><p>"I just I don't know what it is about her, I just want to be around her all the time." He felt overwhelmingly hopeless knowing it would probably be days before he would be able to see her again.</p><p>Suddenly he heard a faint murmur behind him. He stiffened up at the sound. He lifted his head and stared at Toothless for a moment with wide eyes. The dragon was staring past him and gazing at whatever was behind him. Hiccup slowly turned and saw the familiar glowing will o' the wisp floating a mere foot from where he stood. He could feel his heart freeze at the sight. He cautiously took a step forward.</p><p>"So uh...I...I'm supposed to just...follow you right," Hiccup questioned, "and you lead me to my fate...or...or at least to another clue about my grandfather maybe? That's how this works right?" The wisp seemed to motion to him to follow. He turned to Toothless and shrugged.</p><p>"It's only a wisp right," he replied. Toothless nodded and bent down to let Hiccup on.</p><p>"Let's go bud."</p><p>—-</p><p>Merida sat quietly at her vanity brushing her long red curls as she prepared for bed. She gazed blankly at her reflection in the mirror as her mind drifted back to Hiccup. She wondered what he and Toothless had done for the day without her. She wondered what mischief Toothless had gotten into. But mostly she wondered if they missed her as much as she missed them. She took a deep breath as she put her brush down upon the vanity. She was suddenly distracted by the faint sound of a tap on her window.</p><p>She glanced behind her briefly but brushed it off and thought nothing of it. Suddenly she heard it again, and then again. She furrowed her brow as she turned back in the direction from which the sound had come. It seemed to be coming from her balcony door. She picked up her thick navy blue robe and slowly slipped it on over her off-white kirtle. She then picked up the chamberstick and crept forward to the door. She heard another unmistakable tiny tap on the window just as she approached the door.</p><p>Cautiously she opened the heavy green drapes just a small amount to peek through, but she could see nothing through the window. She held her hand up to the glass and peered through trying to see what was making the noise. Suddenly a small stone struck the glass right in front of her, causing her to flinch.</p><p>"What in the world," she muttered to herself. Was someone throwing stones at her window? If so, from where? Her room was on the fifth floor of the castle and was far too high for anyone on the ground to be able to throw stones at. She opened the door and crept out. There was nobody on the balcony, she walked to the edge and looked down below. She could see there was nobody nearby at all. Suddenly a hand touched her shoulder, startling her. Without a second thought, she turned instantly, smacked the hand away and punched the person in the face. The person fell to the ground with a thud and groaned in pain. She held her candle up to see the culprit. Her eyes went wide in sudden realization.</p><p>"Hiccup," she questioned. She instantly knelt beside him and helped him to sit up.</p><p>"Jeaze Merida," Hiccup groaned as he rubbed the side of his face where she had hit him, "you really pack a punch."</p><p>"I'm sorry," she replied, "I...I didn't know it was ye." She put her candle stick down quickly and then gently took his face in her hands. She pulled him forward and looked closely at his cheek where she had hit him. Hiccup's heart fluttered at her gentle touch. Her hands were soft and warm and comforting and as she held him he could feel his earlier frustrations slowly melting away. Being suddenly so close to her as she held his face in her hands made him feel as if his breath was suddenly caught in his throat. He gulped as he gazed back at her and he couldn't help but to smile.</p><p>"D-don't apologize," Hiccup replied softly as he gazed up at her, "I...I should have known better than to sneak up on you." She suddenly pulled her hands away from him and crossed her arms over her chest, leaving him silently longing for her touch. She glared back at him.</p><p>"What are ye doing here Hiccup," she asked in an angry tone, "have ye lost yer mind, how did ye even get up here?" Hiccup grinned up at her as he pointed upward to the top of the turret. As she looked up, Toothless grinned down at her from above. She turned her eyes back to Hiccup and glared at him. She stood up quickly with arms still crossed.</p><p>"Yer crazy ye know that," she replied in annoyance as she glared down at him, "flying Toothless right up to the castle, what were ye thinkin'?" Hiccup grinned at her. Though he could see she was annoyed with him, he couldn't help but to smile. To say she was a sight for sore eyes was an understatement. He could feel his heart racing at the sight of her. She was just as beautiful in the moonlight if not more so. He realized he was staring at her again, but this time he couldn't seem to pull his eyes away. He had missed her and he realized that part of the reason for his foul mood earlier was because he hadn't seen her all day.</p><p>"It's okay," he replied, "Toothless is a Nightfury, he's near impossible to see in the dark." Merida continued to glare at him. He stood up from the ground and smiled at her despite her annoyed glare.</p><p>"Yer lucky Lord Dingwall left this afternoon," she exclaimed, "otherwise he'd surely have spotted ye and Toothless!" Hiccup attempted to reply but she continued to rant.</p><p>"And how is it that ye even knew this was my room," Merida questioned. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"Well...I..."</p><p>"Suppose ye had my brother's room, or my parents room, then what?"</p><p>"Well, I didn't know," he replied simply, "I...I just guessed. I...I mean, I did try like two rooms before this one."</p><p>"Ye guessed," she exclaimed as she smacked him on the arm. Hiccup chuckled at her reaction.</p><p>"Whoa...hey...I...I'm kidding," he replied with a chuckle. Merida huffed and turned away from him. Hiccup took a few steps closer to her.</p><p>"Actually, uh, t-the truth is," he went on as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "the wisps led me." Merida turned to him with look of surprise on her face.</p><p>"The wisps...led ye here," she questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Right to your window in fact," he replied as he took a step closer. Merida gazed up at him curiously.</p><p>"Why would they lead ye here," she questioned. Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>"I'm not really sure," Hiccup replied, "I think I...I might have a-asked them to."</p><p>"How," Merida questioned, "nobody can conjure a wisp, they...they simply appear when their needed."</p><p>"Look, I don't know," Hiccup replied, "all I know is that I was walking in the woods to blow off some steam, a-and I started thinking about you. Then I...I said out loud that I wanted to see you a-and right after I said that the wisps appeared." Merida turned from him as she thought about what he'd said.</p><p>It didn't make any sense, the wisps couldn't be conjured, they only revealed themselves when it suited them. Of course she was no expert on wisps, she supposed it was possible. But the wisps were supposed to lead you to your fate, not to whatever you wanted just because you asked. Unless of course...what you wanted and your fate were one in the same. Merida turned and gazed up at him curiously. Pieces of their earlier conversations flashed through her mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"Well, maybe...maybe it's not chance," Hiccup replied. He stood suddenly and approached her. Without thinking he took hold of both her hands in his.</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup said, "I...I think you're the one, I mean the one I'm meant to find..."</p><p>—-</p><p>"It...it's not a coincidence of that I'm sure," Merida said, "honestly, it...it feels more like fate that we met Hiccup."</p><p>...</p><p>Merida gazed at him in curiosity. Could she somehow be a part of Hiccup's fate? If so what did that mean? She could feel her heart begin to race at the thought.</p><p>"Look I...I'm sorry," he replied, "I...I just followed the wisps like you said I should. I mean, I...I didn't even know where they were leading me at first. When I realized where I was going, I...well I know I should have stayed away from the castle but I just...I really wanted to see you, a-and I kinda need to talk to you about something." Merida's eyes softened as she continued to gaze up at him.</p><p>"Well ye can't stay long," Merida replied.</p><p>"I know, I know," he replied, "I promise I won't stay long."</p><p>"What did ye want to talk to me about," she asked.</p><p>"Well," he sighed, "first...what happened with your mom, are you grounded?"</p><p>"Aye," she sighed, "for three days!"</p><p>"Really," Hiccup sighed disappointedly. Merida nodded.</p><p>"And that's not even the worst part," she sighed, "she's talking about appointing me a guard to follow me around everywhere I go, which would mean..."</p><p>"That you wouldn't be able to come see me even after the three days," Hiccup finished her sentence in a disappointed tone. Merida nodded with a sullen look on her face. Hiccup looked down at the floor as he thought about their predicament.</p><p>"I'm really sorry I got you in trouble," he sighed.</p><p>"Don't be," Merida replied, "it was my fault, I knew better."</p><p>"Still," he replied, "I knew you had to be back before dark...a-and I..."</p><p>"Hiccup, it's not like we fell asleep on purpose," Merida replied simply, "it just happened." He grinned at her sheepishly.</p><p>"Yeah...a-about that," he paused a moment as he contemplated his choice of words, "you, uh, you fell asleep before I did. I...I knew it was getting late and I should have woke you up, but y-you were so peaceful leaned up against me and I...I just couldn't bring myself to disturb you. I just thought it couldn't hurt to let you sleep but then I fell asleep too and..."</p><p>"What happened, happened," Merida replied, "it's no one's fault really, it was just an accident." Hiccup nodded silently as he gazed back at her. How he longed to tell her how he felt inside whenever she was with him. But his fear still seemed to be holding him back. He couldn't bring himself to tell her how he felt holding her in his arms or that the reason he didn't wake her was so he could hold her close to him just a little longer.</p><p>"Well maybe It's not too late," Merida went on, "I mean I still have three days to change her mind. Maybe if I just accept my punishment without a fuss, she'll see I don't need a guard." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Okay...so maybe three days before we can see each other again," He replied as he stepped closer to her, "that's not so bad."</p><p>"No, I guess not," Merida sighed, "but it'd be three days of not being able to solve the mystery of our grandparents and that spell."</p><p>"Well, maybe you should use the time you're stuck in the castle to maybe look through the archives to find out why Berk was banished from Dunbroch," Hiccup suggested.</p><p>"Aye, that's not a bad idea," Merida replied as she thought about it." She looked back at him. "I don't know that I'll have much more luck than my Dad, though."</p><p>"Well it's worth a try at least," Hiccup replied, "I mean, if we could find out why Berk was banished in the first place, we'd be closer to finding out what really happened to our grandparents." Merida nodded as she thought about what he'd said.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "it's definitely worth a try."</p><p>"So," she sighed as she changed the subject, "what did ye need to tell me?"</p><p>"Oh uh," Hiccup rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "well something kinda happened after you left today."</p><p>"What," Merida asked in curiosity.</p><p>"A couple of my dragon riders found me," Hiccup replied, "apparently I was gone a little too long for their liking so my second in command, who is currently acting as Chief, sent them after me thinking I had gotten into trouble."</p><p>"What do you mean they found you," she questioned in confusion, "did they think ye were missing?"</p><p>"Well, uh...the thing is," he sighed, "uh, I, uh, I didn't exactly tell anyone where I was going, I...I mean besides my mom and Fishlegs.</p><p>"Okay," she replied, "that's not so bad, I mean at least ye told someone."</p><p>"But I...uh...I also sorta...took all the maps with me, so that when my second in command got back to Berk they wouldn't come after me," Hiccup replied. Merida furrowed her brow in slight confusion as she tried to make sense of what he was trying to tell her.</p><p>"Okay, so ye left without telling anybody and ye also didn't want them to find ye," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Why didn't ye want to be found Hiccup," Merida questioned, "what exactly was it that ye were running from?" Hiccup groaned at her question. He could feel his frustration bubbling to the surface as she questioned him.</p><p>"You know what I was running from," Hiccup replied in an aggravated tone. He turned away in frustration and leaned on the edge of the balcony. He sighed heavily as he gazed blankly into the distance. Merida was slightly taken aback by his sudden outburst.</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida said softly as she gazed up at him in concern. She came up beside him and gently lay a hand on his arm. Hiccup looked down at her hand on his arm. The simple touch of her hand brought calmness to his mind. He sighed as he turned his eyes to her lovely face. For just a moment, his mind flashed back briefly to the woman in his dream and he wondered the significance of it. Merida gazed back at him with an expression of genuine concern.</p><p>"What's going on," she questioned, "ye've ne'er seemed so frazzled before... please...just talk to me." Hiccup shook his head and dropped his eyes to the ground as he contemplated what to say.</p><p>"Look, uh...I'm sorry I...I didn't mean to snap at you," Hiccup said remorsefully, "it...it's just everything's a-a little more complicated now."</p><p>"How," Merida questioned in a concerned tone. Hiccup sighed heavily. He turned back to her and gazed at her as if he were unsure of telling her more. Merida gazed at him with a worried expression on her face.</p><p>"Well I...I told you that my second in command was a woman," Hiccup sighed, "but what I didn't tell you was that...Astrid is my second in command." Merida's heart froze for a moment as she gazed at him in realization.</p><p>"I-is Astrid one of the Vikings here in Dunbroch," she questioned.</p><p>"No," Hiccup shook his head, "no, she stayed behind." Merida took a deep breath as a brief sense of relief washed over her.</p><p>"She only sent Fishlegs, who I told you about," Hiccup continued, "and Eret." Hiccup nearly gritted his teeth as he spoke Eret's name.</p><p>"Ye don't sound like yer too thrilled about this Eret fellow," Merida replied.</p><p>Hiccup took a deep breath before continuing. He was slightly hesitant to tell her more.</p><p>"That's because...Eret is Astrid's husband," Hiccup replied in aggravation.</p><p>"Oh," Merida replied simply. She gazed at him solemnly, unsure exactly of how to respond to his explanation. She slowly drew her hand away and turned her gaze to the dark horizon, feeling slightly disheartened.</p><p>"I know, I'm not fully explaining," Hiccup replied, "it's just my mind is all over the place, overthinking as usual. I should probably start from the beginning." Merida nodded.</p><p>"Eret was my enemy once," Hiccup replied, "but after he helped us defeat a really bad Viking named Drago Bludvist, I allowed him to join the Dragon riders. He became one of us, he was one of my best friends. I was the first to trust him." Merida sighed as she listened.</p><p>"And I suppose the reason ye and this...Eret are not friends anymore has to do with Astrid," Merida questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Is it because yer jealous of him," Merida asked solemnly as she glanced up at him.</p><p>"No," Hiccup replied too quickly. He shook his head and took a deep breath.</p><p>"I don't know...maybe," he replied, "a little...I guess." Merida could feel her heart lurch with his words. She sighed slightly as she dropped her eyes from his.</p><p>"Look I...I don't know what to say," Hiccup replied, "I know that it's over with Astrid, I accepted that a long time ago. But every time I see them together, every time I have to deal with Eret, I just I get so angry and it just reminds me of what happened and all my feelings come flooding back!"</p><p>Merida remained quiet as she contemplated his statement. She couldn't help but to wonder if perhaps she had misjudged his feelings after all. It seemed to her that Hiccup still might be grappling with his feelings for Astrid.</p><p>"It doesn't make any sense," Hiccup continued in frustration, "I know she's moved on and for the most part so have I, but I still feel like...like he's taken my place!"</p><p>"Do ye still feel something for Astrid," Merida questioned softly. Hiccup remained quiet for a long moment as he thought about her question. He supposed a part of him would always care about Astrid one way or another, they were still friends after all. But what did that mean? Was he doomed to harbor feelings for his ex forever? Would those unresolved feelings always hinder him from moving on completely? And what about these new feelings he was having for Merida? What if he decided to tell Merida how he felt and he only hurt her later on because he still harbored residual feelings for Astrid? Merida gazed up at him as she awaited his answer.</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup replied, "maybe a part of me still does." Merida sighed softly as she dropped her eyes from his.</p><p>"It's just...it's hard to explain exactly," Hiccup replied, "I mean, I'm over her...I am. But every time I see them together, I just, I think about how it ended, and what I could have done differently. I think of everything I did wrong, everything I said or didn't say. I think of everything Eret can offer her that I couldn't or just didn't."</p><p>"It sounds to me like ye blame yer self for what happened with Astrid," Merida replied knowingly. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"I suppose I do," he replied, "I...I put her through a lot when we were together. I...I don't think that I treated her very well. I certainly didn't appreciate everything she did for me."</p><p>"How so," Merida questioned.</p><p>"It's kinda complicated," Hiccup replied. Merida sighed again, unsure if she should push him to say more.</p><p>"Look, ye don't have to tell me if ye don't want to," Merida replied, "but it might do ye good to get it all off yer chest." Hiccup nodded as he thought about it.</p><p>"Well it sorta started after my Dad died," Hiccup replied. "After I became chief, I was in a pretty bad place. It was just really hard for me to mourn him a-and try to live up to his legacy. It got to the point I would just leave for days just to get away from the pressure and all the reminders of my Dad. I was just trying to escape from the overwhelming guilt I felt because of how he died."</p><p>"Guilt," Merida questioned. Hiccup sighed heavily.</p><p>"It was my fault," Hiccup replied softly, "he...he died trying to protect me."</p><p>"Hiccup," Merida replied in sorrow. She took his hand in her's and squeezed it reassuringly. Hiccup just gazed at her hand in his, thankful for her small show of affection.</p><p>"And Astrid...well, she tried everything to help me," Hiccup said softly, "but I didn't let her, I just pushed her away. Every time she tried to talk about it, I changed the subject. If she forced the issue we got into a fight. I started just taking off without even telling her, just to avoid another argument. I just felt like I was being pulled in every direction. I had to be Chief, I had to make decisions I felt inept to make, and then she was pressuring me to talk about all the feelings that I just wanted to forget. Honestly, I didn't want to feel anything, because if I did, the pain of loosing my Dad would just tear me apart. So I shut her out, completely, which really hurt her. And of course my leaving all the time also caused her to resent me because every time I left she had to take over as Chief."</p><p>Merida stayed quiet as she listened.</p><p>"So you see, It was mostly my fault that things ended with Astrid," Hiccup went on, "I just...I wanted to stop thinking about my Dad and she wanted me to talk about it. She thought talking would help, so she would pester me about things she just didn't understand and I didn't know how to explain that to her, so I just avoided her all the time." Hiccup sighed heavily.</p><p>"In her frustration over me, I guess she started to really lean on Eret. She relied on him, he was always there when I wasn't," Hiccup continued, "In my absence they just got closer and eventually after she broke up with me they got together."</p><p>"And this is why ye dislike him," Merida questioned, "because he is with Astrid now?" Hiccup shook his head.</p><p>"No, it's because he betrayed me," Hiccup replied in frustration, "they both did!" Hiccup sighed heavily as he turned his eyes back to the horizon.</p><p>"I mean she was my girlfriend a-and he was my best friend," Hiccup went on, "you don't do that, you don't go after your best friend's girlfriend! I just, I can't forgive them for that. I don't know if I ever will!"</p><p>Merida's heart plummeted to her stomach with his words. Hiccup had all but admitted that he still wasn't completely over what happened with Astrid. She was sure the feelings she had started to have for him were most likely unrequited, and her heart almost broke at the thought. Still, he had come to her for advice, and as a true friend she vowed to help him in his time of need.</p><p>"But Hiccup," Merida replied softly, "if ye can't forgive them...how exactly do ye expect to move on?" She gazed up at him once more with a look of sympathy and concern. Hiccup looked back at her and shrugged, unsure of how to even answer. He shook his head and dropped his eyes from her's then turned to face the dark horizon. He was trying his best to keep his frustration from bubbling to the surface once again.</p><p>Merida reached up slowly and placed her soft hand upon his stubbled cheek. She gently pulled his face to look at her. But he seemed to be avoiding her gaze.</p><p>"Look at me Hiccup," Merida said softly. Hiccup turned his eyes to her and gazed at her for a long moment. He couldn't explain how he felt as he gazed back into her sky blue eyes. It felt as if everything about him were exposed. It was as if she could see right through him, right to his very soul. He could feel his breath catch in his throat as she gazed back at him with a sympathetic expression on her face.</p><p>"I know what happened broke yer heart," Merida said softly, "but if ye really want to move on a-and give love another chance, ye need to be willing to let go o' the past. Ye need to swallow yer hurt pride and be willing to forgive them. It's the only way to put it to rest." Hiccup remained quite as he contemplated her words.</p><p>"Unless of course ye don't want to," Merida replied solemnly as she dropped her hand from his face, "unless maybe yer not as over Astrid as ye say?" Hiccup shook his head in denial.</p><p>"No, I am," Hiccup replied insistently, "I am over her...everything I told you about Astrid before is true."</p><p>"Then maybe ye should stop allowing yer past to lead ye around by the nose," she said firmly, "I mean, how exactly do ye expect to find love again if yer so caught up in the past that ye can't see yer future?" Hiccup gazed at her wordlessly as her wise words swirled through his brain. He sighed heavily as he contemplated what she said.</p><p>"Is Eret a good person," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Y-yeah," Hiccup replied, "I guess, I...I mean I wouldn't have trusted him otherwise." Merida nodded.</p><p>"And does he treat Astrid well," she asked.</p><p>Hiccup nodded, "he seems to."</p><p>"Do ye believe that he truly loves Astrid," Merida questioned. Hiccup sighed as he nodded again.</p><p>"And do ye believe that Astrid is happy," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Honestly, she...she's the happiest I've ever seen her," Hiccup replied softly as he dropped his eyes to the ground. Merida nodded as she gazed up at him.</p><p>"Then ye should be happy for her," Merida replied, "if ye do still care for her, then ye should only want for her happiness. Even if she's happiest with someone other than ye. Despite everything she deserves her happiness...just the same as ye do." Hiccup nodded as she spoke.</p><p>"So I should just accept what happened," Hiccup questioned, "just let go of my anger and just...let it be?"</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied.</p><p>"How is just letting it go supposed to make me feel any differently," he questioned.</p><p>"And what do ye think holding on to all the anger would do for ye Hiccup," Merida questioned, "besides hold ye back from finding yer own happiness?" Hiccup gazed at her as she spoke.</p><p>"I mean, did it ever occur to ye," Merida went on, "that maybe Astrid's place was never with ye to begin with. Maybe her fate was always to be with Eret? Maybe they are soul mates...just the same as Mairead and Hiccup the first." Hiccup stayed quiet as he thought over her words. What Eret had said earlier that night replayed in his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"I never meant for it to happen," Eret continued, "it just did. I didn't have much say in the matter."</p><p>...</p><p>He looked out over the horizon as he thought over all Merida had said. Hearing the words from her lips made what he'd known in his heart all along crystal clear. He had carried the guilt of how things ended with Astrid for far too long.</p><p>When they were together he had tried so hard to feel what she needed him to feel. He felt guilty when he realized his feelings weren't what they should have been. After they broke up, all he could see was his failures and his guilt became worse. Then seeing Astrid's happiness with Eret only magnified that guilt. He sighed heavily. Honestly he should probably have ended things when he first started to realize that his feelings weren't what they were supposed to be.</p><p>But Merida had brought up a good point. Maybe the truth was that his and Astrid's relationship was never meant to last.</p><p>Hiccup had never thought about it as Merida had said it. It had never crossed his mind that the break-up wasn't really anyone's fault to begin with. Regardless of whatever he and Astrid did or didn't do, their relationship had simply run it's course and there was nothing that could have changed that.</p><p>Fate and destiny were never exactly something that Hiccup had ever really believed in before, but now he had begun to wonder. Could everything they had been through just been leading them to where they were always meant to be...to whom they were always meant to be with? Maybe for Astrid, he was only just a brief stop on the path that had always been leading her to Eret. Just as Hiccup's had always been leading him to...</p><p>Hiccup turned his eyes back to Merida. He could feel his heart racing at the thought that perhaps the reason he had felt so drawn to her in the first place, was because he was always meant to find her. Maybe she was his fate.</p><p>He reached for her hand and gripped it tightly in his as he gazed longingly into her sky blue eyes. He leaned a little closer to her wanting so much to kiss her. He could feel his heart racing. He had never wanted to be with her more than he did right now.</p><p>"How do you do that," he questioned with a soft smile. She just gazed up at him and smiled slightly in return.</p><p>"What," she asked.</p><p>"How do you always know exactly what to say to get through to me," he asked as he leaned just a little closer. Merida shrugged as a blush arose on her cheeks.</p><p>"I don't really," she replied as she nervously tucked a rogue curl behind her ear, "I...I just...I speak from the heart." Hiccup nodded as he thought over her statement. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.</p><p>"I'm sorry if I overstepped," Merida replied, "but I meant what I said, ye deserve every happiness that she does. I just hope what I said helps ye to maybe see things differently."</p><p>"Don't apologize," he said softly, "you did help...you always do," he smiled slightly, "maybe that's why the wisps led me here." Merida smiled back as she blushed once again. Hiccup's heart nearly melted at the sight.</p><p>"Well yer my friend Hiccup," Merida went on, "I...I care about ye, and I just...I want to see ye happy, not bogged down by yer past. Yer a good person and ye deserve to be happy whether ye believe it or not."</p><p>Hiccup smiled warmly at her as he reached up slowly and brushed more of her curls away from her beautiful face. Merida shivered slightly as his finger tips grazed her cheek.</p><p>"I'm glad you speak from your heart," Hiccup replied, "I'm glad that you tell me like it is, and you don't hold back. It's what I like about you the most I think."</p><p>He had never felt more ready to tell her how he felt than he did in this moment.</p><p>"In fact, maybe I should speak from my heart too," he said. He took a deep breath as he continued to gaze at her longingly. Merida's heart skipped a beat with his words</p><p>"Merida," Hiccup sighed nervously, "I...Uh, okay...um, you know that I like you." Merida nodded.</p><p>"A-and you like me," he went on, "a-and we're friends." Merida felt her heart lurch slightly with his statement.</p><p>"Uh, but uh, what I mean is..., the way I...I feel a-about you, uh, I just," Hiccup stuttered, "I...I mean, what I'm trying to say is..." Suddenly there was a knock at Merida's chamber door. Merida's eyes went wide with panic.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor's voice echoed from the other side of the door, "may I come in dear, I would like to speak with you." Merida turned back to the opened balcony door.</p><p>"Um...uh...just a second mum," she called. She looked back at Hiccup in both concern and panic.</p><p>"Ye need to go," she said frantically. Hiccup let go of her hand reluctantly and sighed. He called to Toothless. He mounted the dragon the moment he landed on the balcony. Hiccup looked back at her longingly. If only her mother had waited just a few more minutes to interrupt, he might have confessed his true feelings. He sighed heavily.</p><p>"Alright," he sighed, "I'll be at our meeting spot in the morning," he said softly, "I know the odds are against us but I hope I see you there." She smiled slightly.</p><p>"I mean, who knows," he grinned, "maybe the reason your mom wants to talk is because she changed her mind about your grounding."</p><p>"Well if ye don't get out o' here now and my mum sees ye, I'll be grounded for life," she replied, "and ye'll be a prisoner!"</p><p>"Okay...okay," he chuckled slightly, "I'm going." Merida walked quickly to the opened balcony door, she paused and looked back at him. She smiled slightly.</p><p>"For what it's worth Hiccup," she said, "I'm glad the wisps led ye here." Hiccup smiled warmly in her direction.</p><p>"Me too," he replied.</p><p>"Be careful," she said softly, "and don't get caught!" Hiccup nodded as he gazed at her tenderly. Her previous words flashed quickly through his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>"How exactly do ye expect to find love again if yer so caught up in the past that ye can't see yer future?"</p><p>...</p><p>His vision had been clouded by his past, but gazing back at her now he could swear he could see his future in her pale blue eyes.</p><p>"Sleep well princess," he said with a soft smile. She smiled one last time before turning quickly back into her room. She pulled the balcony door shut behind her. She then drew the heavy curtains quickly.</p><p>"Let's go bud," Hiccup said. Toothless nodded and took off into the night sky.</p><p>—-</p><p>"Merida," Elinor called again. Merida quickly opened her door.</p><p>"Is everything alright dear," Elinor asked, "I...I could have sworn I heard ye talking to someone."</p><p>"No," Merida said quickly. Elinor looked back at her daughter curiously.</p><p>"Uh, I mean I was talking," Merida corrected herself, "to myself, I mean I was just thinking out loud I guess."</p><p>Elinor continued to gaze at her incredulously.</p><p>"So...um...what did ye need to talk to me about mum," Merida asked.</p><p>"Oh uh," Elinor replied, "about yer staying out and...and what I said earlier."</p><p>"Mum," Merida interrupted.</p><p>"No Merida let me finish," Elinor replied.</p><p>"I talked it over with yer father," Elinor went on, "and well...maybe I overreacted a bit. I can't help it, I...I still see ye as a wee lass at times. I forget yer a grown woman now. So maybe its time I started treating ye as such." Merida smiled up at her mother.</p><p>"So with that in mind,"Elinor replied, "I decided against the guard." Merida smiled as she hugged her mother.</p><p>"Thanks mum," she replied. Elinor smiled as she hugged her back.</p><p>"So long as ye heed my rules," Elinor replied firmly.</p><p>"Ye have my word mum," Merida replied, "it won't happen again."</p><p>"Now as far as the grounding goes," Elinor replied, "that still stands, as well as the extra lessons."</p><p>"Aye mum," she replied.</p><p>"Okay dear," Elinor replied, "ye should get some rest then, I'll see ye in the morn'.</p><p>"Goodnight mum," Merida said.</p><p>"Goodnight dear," Elinor replied as she exited the room.</p><p>—</p><p>Eret paced back and forth as Fishlegs aimlessly stoked the fire.</p><p>"Maybe it was a mistake for me to come," Eret muttered.</p><p>"Eh, Hiccup just had to blow off some steam," Fishlegs replied, "he'll be back once he's cooled off."</p><p>Eret sighed heavily as he paused by the fire. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared blankly into the fire as he thought about his and Hiccup's earlier argument. It was no surprise to him that Hiccup still felt betrayed. He did not blame Hiccup for feeling as he did, but he had hoped by now that he would have accepted things as they were. That they all could put the past behind them and finally move forward. Perhaps it was only wishful thinking on his part. Perhaps the only way that he and Astrid could move forward was to just give up the hope that Hiccup would ever accept them and move on.</p><p>He did not want that to happen. He still hoped that he and Hiccup could eventually make peace. They had been as close as brothers once, and it was a great loss to Eret to have lost that comradery.</p><p>"Well I can see you still have a blatant disregard for authority," Hiccup said as he stepped forth from the woods. Eret glared in his direction. Toothless happily padded behind Hiccup and greeted Meatlug and Skull Cusher.</p><p>"I'm following orders by being here aren't I," Eret replied.</p><p>"Yeah well I, your Chief, ordered you to leave," Hiccup said haughtily, "and yet here you still are."</p><p>"Look Hic," Eret replied calmly, "I don't want to fight with you mate, I didn't come here to have it out with you." Hiccup walked up to Eret and stood in front of him with arms crossed and nodding at his response. Unsure of what Hiccup would do or say, Eret stared back at him in uncertainty. Hiccup sighed heavily.</p><p>"I...I don't want to fight with you either Eret," Hiccup replied, "I've been angry with you for a long time...and honestly...I'm really tired of being angry." Eret gazed at Hiccup in surprise, unsure of how to respond.</p><p>"Hic," Eret started, "look I know how you might feel about me after everything, and I honestly don't blame you, I'm sorry for how things went down, truly I am..."</p><p>"Listen Eret," Hiccup replied, "you don't need to do that."</p><p>"What," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Apologize," Hiccup replied, "or...or explain yourself again...look things happen for a reason, maybe we don't always know what that reason is at the time, or...or maybe we just get too caught up in our grief and anger to truly see it. Fate isn't always what we think we want, but it is what we need."</p><p>"What are you saying exactly," Eret questioned.</p><p>"I'm saying that," Hiccup sighed as he tried to find the right words to continue, "I'm saying that things are as they should be...regardless of how or...or why it all went down, everything is how it was always meant to be. I mean I...I loved Astrid...and it really hurt to lose her but I know now that she and I...we just were never meant to be. Not the way that you and she are anyway."</p><p>Eret stared at Hiccup for a long moment at a loss for words.</p><p>"Hic, I...I don't know what to say," Eret replied, "I just..."</p><p>"Don't say anything," Hiccup interrupted dismissively, "ya know this was awkward enough as it is, I'd really rather just let it go for now, alright." Eret smirked at Hiccup.</p><p>"What ever you say Chief," Eret replied smugly. He suddenly noticed the fresh bruise on Hiccup's cheek bone.</p><p>"What happened to you after you ran off anyway," Eret questioned. Hiccup furrowed his brow at Eret's question.</p><p>"What are you talking about," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"You look like you got into a fight," Eret replied. Hiccup scoffed as he pushed past him.</p><p>"A fight," Hiccup scoffed, "a fight with who?"</p><p>"How did he get the black eye then," Eret asked smugly, "did you fall off your dragon?"</p><p>"What this," Hiccup questioned dismissively as he motioned to his bruised cheek. Eret nodded as he gazed at Hiccup incredulously.</p><p>"Let's just say, a friend knocked some sense into me," Hiccup smirked as he turned his back on Eret and headed over to the fire. Eret furrowed his brow at his cryptic answer as he followed after him.</p><p>"Hey wait...Hic," Eret stuttered, "what friend?" Hiccup continued to smirk as he made his way over to Fish, ignoring Eret's question.</p><p>"Hey Hic," Fishlegs greeted.</p><p>"Hey Fish," Hiccup replied as he sat down beside his friend.</p><p>"So have you found anything about your grandfather and the mysterious woman," Fish questioned. Hiccup smiled at his question.</p><p>"A lot actually," Hiccup replied. He turned and noticed Eret staring at him in intrigue He turned back to Fish.</p><p>"Well do tell," Fish said in anticipation, "who was she, what happened with your grandfather, what was the symbol on the pendant?</p><p>Okay, okay, look," Hiccup replied, "it's really kinda a long a-and complicated story." Hiccup looked up at Eret again. Eret looked intrigued.</p><p>"Well I, uh, I sorta accidentally met her great great granddaughter," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Really," Fish asked in surprise, "how did you know...I mean uh how did you find out she was related?"</p><p>"Well uh it's uh really kinda crazy actually," Hiccup went on, "she...she looks exactly like the sketch. I mean when I first saw her I was just stunned at the resemblance. Anyway the girl in the sketch was named Mairead and Merida is actually named for her."</p><p>"That's crazy Hic," Fish replied, "so did uh...Merida have more information about your grandfather."</p><p>"Yeah, actually," Hiccup continued, "when I officially introduced myself after our initial meeting she immediately recognized my name." Fish and Eret continued to listen intently.</p><p>"Turns out she had recently found her great great grandmother's journal which mentioned Hiccup the first," Hiccup continued, "and it's basically an entire account of the two of them meeting and falling in love."</p><p>"That's crazy," Fish replied.</p><p>"Yeah no kidding," Hiccup continued, "but even crazier is the fact that she has the same exact pendant as me."</p><p>"The one from your dream," Fish gasped, "the same as the one your dad gave your mom?"</p><p>"Exactly the same," Hiccup replied, "her's was passed to her from her great great grandmother."</p><p>"Okay well, what about the symbol," Fish questioned, "did she know what it meant?" Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Yeah actually," Hiccup replied, "she called it a Celtic knot, it apparently means soul mates." Fish nodded his head in interest. Eret just remained quiet as he thought over all Hiccup had told them.</p><p>"Oh uh, that reminds me," Hiccup said as he reached for his notebook, "I was going to run this by you when I got back to Berk...but since you're here maybe you could take a look at it now."</p><p>Hiccup flipped to the drawing from the standing stones and then handed it over to Fish. Fish gazed at the sketch in intrigue.</p><p>"So I copied this from the standing stones a few days ago," Hiccup replied, "I translated it already but I wanted you to take a second look for me."</p><p>"Did you say standing stones," Fish questioned.</p><p>"Yeah," Hiccup grinned, "they're real too." Fish looked at the drawing intently.</p><p>"It's old Norse," Fish replied excitedly, looks like it says, 'Souls be bound...lovers true...fate be linked...two hearts now one." Fish looked up at Hiccup curiously.</p><p>"What exactly is this Hic," Fish asked.</p><p>"Well, we think it could be some sort of a spell," Hiccup replied, "but we're still trying to figure it out."</p><p>"See these symbols," Hiccup pointed to the combined symbols, "they're the same as the ones on our pendants, and I was thinking this could be some sort of a binding spell...but I can't figure out what the purpose of it was."</p><p>"Interesting," Fish replied, "so you think both of your grandparents had something to do with this...this binding spell?" Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Well, why exactly," Fish questioned, "what do you think they were trying to do."</p><p>"Well, it...it's hard to say," Hiccup replied, "I mean there's a lot more to it, we still have a lot of questions. Merida and I were trying to find a witch that could maybe answer some of them but that's sort of on hold right now."</p><p>"Why is that," Fish asked.</p><p>"That's kind of a little more than I want to get into right now," Hiccup replied as he cleared his throat. Eret raised an eyebrow at Hiccup as he gazed at him incredulously. He wondered if there was something more about this girl that Hiccup had not mentioned.</p><p>"Well why don't you just tell us a little more about this girl you met then Hic," Eret smirked.</p><p>"Uh...well she's a princess," Hiccup replied, "well I mean, technically she's uh...uh the crowned princess, uh she's next in line for the throne." Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"W-what's she like," Fish asked curiously. Hiccup gulped as he thought of her again and he found himself at a brief loss for words.</p><p>"Uh, well, uh, she's nice," Hiccup stammered, "a-and she's, well, she's amazing...actually, a-and uh, I...I mean, uh she's just s-she's...she's a...a really good person, she's brave, smart, strong-willed, she will not hesitate to tell you like it is. She is nothing you'd expect a princess to be. And she can fight as well as any viking I think."</p><p>"Is she pretty," Fish asked. Hiccup nodded as he tried to fight a smile.</p><p>"Uh...yeah," he replied trying his best to seem aloof about it, "ya know uh she's uh, well she's beautiful, ya know as far as princesses go." He cleared his throat as he looked away, but he could not hide the blush on his face</p><p>"Is she the one that hit you then," Eret questioned. Hiccup looked up to see Eret smirking at him.</p><p>"What," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"Well you ran off earlier all in a tizzy," Eret replied, "then hours later ya show up with a shiner, ya claim a friend knocked some sense into you...was it her?" Hiccup just gazed at Eret deciding on how exactly to answer him.</p><p>"You just said she can fight as well as any Viking. So what happened," Eret questioned smugly, "did ya offend her, did ya try to kiss her and she clocked ya one, did ya tell her she fights like a girl? Hiccup could feel the blush on his cheeks growing deeper.</p><p>"What...no," Hiccup replied dismissively, "I wouldn't do that! I...I just I snuck up on her when she wasn't expecting it." Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"And she gave you a black eyed for it," he questioned.</p><p>"She didn't know it was me," Hiccup replied, "she was defending herself!"</p><p>"That's some princess," Eret replied. Hiccup smirked at him.</p><p>"You don't know the half of it," Hiccup replied. Eret raised his eyebrow at Hiccup's comment.</p><p>"Now it makes sense," Eret said.</p><p>"What," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"You like this girl, don't ya Hic," Eret questioned smugly. Hiccup scoffed at his question.</p><p>"Of course I like her," Hiccup replied dismissively, "we're friends aren't we." Eret gazed back at him skeptically.</p><p>"I don't know Hic," Eret said smugly, "it kinda seems like you might be a little smitten with this girl."</p><p>"Smitten," Hiccup said sarcastically, "what am I five?"</p><p>"Deny it all you want mate," Eret smirked, "it's written all over your face."</p><p>"You don't even know what you're talking about," Hiccup huffed.</p><p>"Right," Eret replied, "you run off hell-bent on never forgiving me, then you go meet your 'friend' and you suddenly have a change of heart." Hiccup groaned and rolled his eyes. He stood from his place and headed off in Toothless' direction.</p><p>"Where are you going now," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Look not to be rude or anything," Hiccup groaned, "but it's been a really long and pretty annoying day and I'm done talking about this with you, so I'm gonna turn in."</p><p>"Right," Eret chuckled slightly, "whatever you say Chief."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. The Mystery Deepens</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 16</p><p>In the wee hours of the morning Merida stood in the stable brushing Angus. She had snuck out a few hours before to leave Hiccup some provisions and a note in their meeting place. But she had been restless all night and didn't want to go back to the castle so soon.</p><p>After her long conversation with Hiccup the night before, she simply couldn't sleep. She was worried about him, she had never seen him so distraught about something. The fact that it seemed to be over his ex and her new husband made Merida worry even more.</p><p>For the past few days, she felt as if they had gotten closer. Slowly she had begun to notice her own feelings growing every day to the point where she thought about him nearly all of the time. Then she had begun to notice him gazing at her here and there, he'd find any reason to take her hand, or he'd tease her in playful banter. There were even moments where she thought he might kiss her.</p><p>It all made her feel as if he had feelings for her as well. But the one thing that threw her off was the fact that in all those instances, he never did anything. He would simply pull away and pretend each close moment hadn't happened at all. This only made her more confused than ever.</p><p>Merida sighed heavily as she continued to brush Angus. After her and Hiccup's conversation regarding Astrid and his seemingly unsettled feelings for his ex, Merida had begun to wonder if it all truly was just in her head. Perhaps all those times that his feelings seemed true had been only wishful thinking on her part. Perhaps the reason he nearly always pulled away was due to his still unresolved feelings for his past love.</p><p>Later that night, after he had left and her mother went to bed, Merida was left alone with her thoughts. And try as she may she could not stop thinking about Hiccup and all he had told her. Thinking about it all made her heart grow heavy and knowing that she would not see Hiccup again for the next three days only made her hopelessness grow. But she had decided to take advantage of her restlessness and attempted to write him multiple letters.</p><p>Unfortunately each letter she composed just hadn't seemed right. In one she had inadvertently confessed her feelings, but she thought it was far too bold, especially if he was still having feelings for Astrid. In another she told him how much she missed him and Toothless but it came out far too wishy washy for her liking. She didn't want to seem desperate. She only wanted to hint at her feelings but not tell him outright. Besides, if he still was harboring feelings for another she was sure he wouldn't notice anyway. Or worse she'd scare him off with her boldness. She certainly didn't want to lose his friendship over it.</p><p>In the end she scrapped all the letters and started from scratch. She wrote to him instead, as a friend and nothing more. She figured it was her best option. Hiccup needed more time to sort through his past and his own feelings and she didn't want to force the issue.</p><p>But it would be a lie to say it didn't bother her, her sleeplessness was proof of that. He had said she was his friend, and he had told her before that he was glad they were friends. Now she thought perhaps that was truly all they were, maybe it was all they would ever be. Though there were moments when he seemed as if he liked her more, those moments were always fleeting and nothing ever came of them.</p><p>In all her years she had never met anyone like Hiccup, someone so genuine, someone who liked her for who she was and no other reason. He didn't come around because he had something to gain, he just liked to spend time with her, or he seemed to at least. It was something she never realized she'd wanted before or maybe she had simply given up on the hope of ever finding it.</p><p>Now it seemed to be all she could think about. But perhaps she was only infatuated with him because he reminded her so much of the Viking from her dream or maybe it was because she was so engrossed in her grandmother's account of her star-crossed love with Hiccup's grandfather. Merida wondered if she was just confusing the feelings that the stories and her dreams stirred within her with her actual feelings for Hiccup. After all, she had never been in love before, she supposed infatuation could be easily confused with love.</p><p>"Angus," she sighed, "I don't know what to do. I'm so confused. I care about Hiccup but I...I just don't know, I'm afraid." She dropped her hand from the horse's mane and began to pace. "I dinnae wish to be some...some...foolish lovesick girl pining for a man who loves another." She huffed as she flung her long red curls back over her shoulder. She crossed her arms over her chest in frustration. "I...I refuse to be that girl!" She sighed again as she lifted the brush to Angus once more and continued to brush the horses dark mane.</p><p>"I just wish he would stop overthinking about the past and...and open his eyes, to see what's right in front of him." Merida sighed again as her father's words regarding her mother suddenly went through her mind</p><p>...</p><p>She just wanted someone to connect with, she wanted me just to treat her as equal. That's when I realized how special she truly was, she wasn't like any of the other girls at all. I got lucky with a one in a million." Merida smiled up at her father.</p><p>"So instead of doing all manner of stupid things to impress her, I just became her friend, and we only grew closer from there."</p><p>...</p><p>She sighed as she thought heavily on her father's words. Perhaps, she thought, the best thing to do was to remain Hiccup's friend, to just be there for him when he needed her. Maybe their friendship was just the beginning of something more and she just need focus on that for now.</p><p>There was no doubt in her mind that there was a reason they had met as they did. Maybe it was mostly to find out about their grandparents, but perhaps there was more to it than that. After all, the will o' the wisps were involved. In fact, in Hiccup's time of need they had led him straight to her. That had to mean something, didn't it?</p><p>She sighed heavily once again. It was getting later in the morning and she had to get back to the castle before her mother noticed she was gone.</p><p>"I'll be back later Angus," she said as she gently rubbed the horse's nose, "maybe we'll trot along the green like we used to." The horse whinnied causing Merida to smile. She turned and made her way back to the castle. She snuck in through the kitchen like she always did. Just as she was about to climb the stairs back to her room, her mother's voice called to her.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor called her name. Merida paused on the steps, knowing she'd been caught. She turned around slowly to face her mother. Elinor gazed at her suspiciously as she crossed her arms over her chest. She noticed Merida's cloak and her bow.</p><p>"Where were ye," Elinor questioned firmly.</p><p>"Uh...nowhere Mum," Merida replied, "I...I couldn't sleep is all. I was thinking on practicing my archery on the green but I ended up walking the garden. Then I just went to check on Angus."</p><p>Elinor nodded as she listened to Merida's explanation. Merida seemed off a bit to Elinor, but she could not quite put her finger on why. The usual spark in her eye was dim today and it seemed as if she had much weighing on her mind.</p><p>"Is there something bothering ye dear," Elinor questioned. Elinor's simple question caused Merida's heart to flinch. Part of her wanted to tell her mother everything in exchange for her motherly advice. But she knew that telling Elinor anything about the Hiccup could have disastrous consequences for the viking and now also his two friends.</p><p>Still she felt as if she had no one really to talk to about the things that were weighing on her mind. Though Hiccup was her friend, she certainly couldn't talk to him about this. That in mind, it was hard to resist the urge to confide in Elinor. Merida held her breath for a moment so as not to lose her composure.</p><p>"I...I'm fine Mum," she replied softly, "I...I just have a lot on my mind."</p><p>"Anything I could help ye with dear," Elinor questioned. Merida shook her head as she tried to ignore the lump that had begun to form in her throat.</p><p>"It's alright," she replied, "I...I just need to work through it on my own. I mean, it...it's nothing bad. I...I mean it's not a big deal or anything, it's just things." Elinor sighed slightly in disappointment.</p><p>"Alright then," Elinor replied, "but if ye change yer mind...well, ye know ye can come to me anytime Merida, about anything. Ye know that don't ye?" Merida dropped her eyes from her mother's gaze.</p><p>"Aye mum," Merida replied softly, "I know." Elinor reached out to Merida and gently pushed her rogue curls behind her ear. She smiled slightly.</p><p>"I love ye Merida," Elinor replied, "and I'm here for ye, no matter what." Merida nodded as she smiled half-heartedly.</p><p>"Thanks mum," she replied softly.</p><p>"Go on then," Elinor sighed, "get settled and we'll see ya at breakfast in a few minutes." With that, Merida turned and headed up the stairs to her room.</p><p>—-</p><p>Hiccup once again found himself in the middle of the woods, and once again the wisps appeared to him but this time he simply followed without question. They led him one by one through the woods until he reached the ruins of a village that seemed to have been abandoned for centuries. The trail of wisps seemed to end at what was once the gates but the wooden doors had long been weathered away by time. All that was left of the gateway was the stone frame. Above his head crudely carved in the stone was the emblem of a dragon that seemed to resemble a Tide glider and above that was a word:</p><p>"Adag," Hiccup furrowed his brow in confusion as he read it aloud.</p><p>"What is this place," he called out into the air, "why did you lead me here?" He was met with nothing but a still and haunting silence, not even the sound of the wind was present.</p><p>Hiccup sighed as he stepped forward through the gate hoping to find something on his own. But the moment he crossed the threshold, the ruins were restored. It was as if he had stepped into the past. He stood, wide-eyed as the village around him bustled with people going about their daily routines. They seemed unfazed by his presence. He stumbled through the village taking in everything around him. He was surprised to see dragons living amongst the people, much like Berk.</p><p>"Pardon me, Hiccup asked a man walking by, "could you just..." But the man passed by without even acknowledging him.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup said, in confusion.</p><p>He turned and observed an older woman who was walking straight for him carrying a basket of what looked like wild flowers.</p><p>"Uh excuse me ma'am," he held his hand out as he tried to stop her but his hand passed right through her and she continued to walk past him as if he wasn't there at all.</p><p>"What the," he looked down at his hand for a moment in confusion. He then looked back up at the woman as she continued on her way. He turned back to the sound of children laughing. Two children were playfully chasing a young terrible terror through the streets, but just when he thought they would have run right into him the children ran through him instead. Hiccup gazed at the children as they continued in their play. Before they had seemed as real as he was, but now they seemed like a mist, slowly dissipating in the morning sun.</p><p>"That's not normal," Hiccup muttered. He looked around curiously.</p><p>"What is this," he called out to the air, "why are you showing me this?" He continued to walk until he came to a large stone building, that seemed like a castle but significantly smaller than that of Dunbroch castle. Above the door was the same word etched in stone as was on the gate. '</p><p>'Adag.'</p><p>Suddenly before his eyes the building crumbled as if he were seeing hundreds of years of decay in just a moment's time. And in the center of the ruins, the woman from his previous dream stood, gazing in his direction from beneath her hood.</p><p>"Mairead," Hiccup muttered to himself. He stepped forward and stood before her.</p><p>"The House of Adag is lost," she said softly.</p><p>"The House of Adag," Hiccup questioned in intrigue, "what's that?"</p><p>"Exiled and forgotten," she continued as he stepped closer still, "it is said an Adag will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond." Hiccup now stood close enough that he could have reached out and touched her if he dared. Mairead gazed up at him, and for the first time he saw her face. Her resemblance to Merida was striking and for a moment as he gazed into her pale blue eyes he almost forgot that it wasn't her. He was struck by the urge to kiss her pale pink lips and it seemed to take everything in him to stop from doing so. Before he could say a word to her she reached forward and gently lay her hand upon his stubbled cheek, causing Hiccup's heart to race. He closed his eyes for a moment as he became nearly entranced by the feel of her soft delicate hand on his skin, but in his mind's eye all he could see was Merida. He opened his eyes and continued to gaze at Mairead. He realized suddenly that she and Merida had the same eyes. They were the same hypnotic sky blue orbs that he swore he could see his future in. This took him by surprise and he couldn't help but to wonder the significance.</p><p>"Heavy is the heart torn by pride," she whispered with emotion in her voice, "and only can be mended by forgiveness' healing hand."</p><p>For a moment his mind flashed to Merida's previous words.</p><p>...</p><p>Ye need to swallow yer hurt pride and be willing to forgive them. It's the only way to put it to rest."</p><p>...</p><p>He shook the memory from his mind and tried to focus on what Mairead had told him. Slowly she withdrew her hand from his face and started to back away. But Hiccup grasped her hand to stop her before she could.</p><p>"Wait, please," Hiccup pleaded. To his surprise she did not vanish as he had half expected she would.</p><p>"What has all this to do with Merida and I," he questioned fervently, "what is it that you want us to find out?"</p><p>"It's so much bigger than us Hiccup," she said, "we were only the start of it."</p><p>"The start of what," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"The house of Adag will rise and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable. For the link that binds them was forged in love." Hiccup furrowed his brow as he listened.</p><p>"Open yer eyes," she said firmly.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup awoke with a start. He sat up quickly and looked around for a moment in confusion. He could see that Fishlegs and Eret were still asleep and it was still fairly early in the morning. He sat forward and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.</p><p>"What the hell," he muttered to himself as he thought about the strange dream. He silently went over everything in his dream. It made no sense to him. Every dream he had had thus far seemed to be about Hiccup the first and Mairead specifically, this one completely threw him. He didn't know what to make of any of it. Still he knew it must be significant, there must be some meaning in what he'd seen and heard. He just needed to figure it out.</p><p>He quickly pulled his notebook from his pocket and sketched the things he saw from memory while they still remained fresh in his mind. He also tried to write down what Mairead had told him as best he could remember. After he finished he stuffed the notebook back in his pocket and stood quickly. He gently shook Toothless to wake him. Toothless groaned slightly as he opened one eye to look up at his rider.</p><p>"Come on bud," Hiccup urged, "maybe if we get to the meeting place early enough we can catch Merida before she leaves. I...I need to tell her about my dream!" Toothless yawned as he slowly stood. He stretched his legs before bending down to let his rider on. Hiccup quickly climbed onto the dragon's back.</p><p>"Let's go bud," he said.</p><p>He was disappointed upon his arrival to find Merida nowhere in sight. He sighed heavily as he dismounted Toothless and meandered around the area looking for any sign that Merida had been there. Merida said she would find a way to reach out to him, but she had never mentioned how. As he slowly scoured the area, Toothless caught the scent of something lovely and familiar. He began to excitedly follow his nose. Hiccup turned when he noticed the dragon pawing at a nearby tree.</p><p>"Toothless...what are ya doing ya wing nut," Hiccup questioned in amusement as he headed in the dragon's direction. As Hiccup approached he noticed it was an old hollowed out tree that had Toothless' attention.</p><p>"Let me see bud," Hiccup replied, as he shoed the dragon from the tree. He crouched down and reached into the hollowed out trunk and pulled out a cloth bag. He opened it to find a fresh supply of food. Hiccup smiled at the sight of nearly a dozen sweet rolls. He looked up at the dragon and grinned.</p><p>"Well, it looks like you rate," he smirked at Toothless as he tossed him a sweet roll. The dragon caught it mid air and gobbled it up quickly, as Hiccup chuckled. Hiccup then reached into the bag for an apple and noticed a folded paper in the bag as well. He pulled it out and studied it, taking note of the green wax seal with the emblem of a sword pressed into it.</p><p>With paper in hand, he sat down beside the tree and leaned his back up against its trunk. He took a quick bite of his apple as he focused on the letter. He traced the emblem in the wax with his finger for a moment then broke the seal to open it. He silently began to read.</p><p>...</p><p>Dear Hiccup,</p><p>I hope this letter finds ye in a better place than ye were yesterday. I haven't had a wink o' sleep worrying about ye. In all this past week since we met there hasn't been a day that ye didn't have a smile on yer face. So to see ya in such a state as ye were last night, truly worries me. I just hope my advice helped, even if just a little. I know it wasn't much and Lord knows ye've been through far more than I have in my lifetime. I don't even really know that my advice did ye much good, but if it helped even just a little then I'm glad.</p><p>That aside I do have a wee bit o' good news. My mother has decided against a guard! Unfortunately, I am still grounded for the next three days, but after that I'll be free to come and see ye.</p><p>I have to admit, I was a bit surprised by her change o' heart. I thought for certain it'd take a wee bit more persuasion to convince her. Though for the past few days, she's been not quite herself. I was too distracted with ye and Toothless to really take notice before, but it seems there may be something weighing on her mind. Last night it seemed as if she had something more to say but she just changed her mind I guess. It worries me a bit, but I'm sure if it's important she'll tell me when she's ready.</p><p>I wanted to let ye know that today I plan to head to the archives after my lessons. I hope I can find out something about yer clan, or the banishment, or even a thing or two more about our grandparents as well. Keep yer fingers crossed that I have a wee bit more luck than my Dad.</p><p>I hope ye and Toothless are well and stayin' out o' trouble. I have no doubt that Toothless is enjoying his treats, ye can tell him they'll be plenty more where that came from tomorrow. And don't ye worry either Hiccup, they'll be plenty o' apples for you too!</p><p>I do miss the both o' ye though. Ye are both the truest friends I could ever ask for and I'm glad we met as we did. I have to say, after spendin' near a week with ye, it will be odd to not see ye for the next three days. But hopefully the days will pass quickly and we will be together again.</p><p>There is one thing that's been plaguing my mind since last night though, the will o' the wisps. If what ye say is true and they appeared after what ye said, it's unlike any account of a wisp I've ever heard of. It makes me wonder if there's not something more to all o' this. But if it's true maybe we could try to ask them to lead us to the witch. I know it's a bit of a long shot but maybe it's worth a try at least. It's something we should think on anyway.</p><p>Anyway, I need to go, before my mum gets suspicious as to why I haven't gone to bed yet. It's not often that I stay up so late. Expect another letter tomorrow, I'll be sure to let ye know if I find anything of interest.</p><p>Hope to see you soon, Merida.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup smiled to himself as he folded the note. The one thing that stood out the most to him was the fact that she had been worried about him, in her words, to the point of sleeplessness. Sure it may have been an exaggeration on her part for effect, but only to make her point clear. She was legitimately worried for him and that made him smile. Not that he wanted to worry her, but the fact that she was worried at all could only be because she truly cared. That in itself was enough to fuel his hope that maybe there was a real chance that she might reciprocate his feelings after all.</p><p>He pulled out the notebook from his pocket and carefully placed the folded letter in between its back cover and the pages. He closed his eyes for a moment as his mind flashed back to the moment on her balcony, just before she closed her door. That brief moment that he gazed at her and he could see in her eyes the future he longed for. In that moment, he knew he had been falling for her since the day they had met and now there was no going back from it. His only hope was that she felt for him as he did for her. He sighed once more as he opened the notebook to a clean page and began to write Merida back.</p><p>When he had finished he neatly folded it and then placed it in the hallow trunk of the tree as Merida had done. He picked up a heavy stone from the ground and placed it on top of the paper to keep it in place until Merida found it. Toothless nudged his shoulder causing him to chuckle as he turned to the dragon.</p><p>"What now bud," Hiccup asked. Toothless sat looking at him with what seemed like a smirk on his face and in his mouth he held a single purple flower. Hiccup chuckled at the sight. Toothless nudged Hiccup insistently until he took the flower from his mouth.</p><p>"What," Hiccup questioned as he raised an eyebrow at the dragon. Toothless whined and motioned to the tree.</p><p>"You want me to give this," he held up the flower, "to Merida too?" Toothless nodded. Hiccup looked at the flower and smiled. He looked back up at Toothless and shrugged his shoulders.</p><p>"I guess it's a nice touch," he grinned. Toothless could see that Hiccup was trying to seem nonchalant about it, but the blush on his face was evident.</p><p>Hiccup lifted the stone on top of the letter and placed the flower on top, then he carefully replaced the stone.</p><p>"Alright bud," Hiccup said as he turned to face the dragon, "let's head back, the others should be awake by now." Toothless waited for Hiccup to climb onto his saddle and then the two headed off into the woods.</p><p>—-</p><p>After breakfast Merida was surprised that her mother had decided to give her the day off from her lessons. Though she thought this strange she took advantage of her now free time and headed to the archives to see what she could find, if anything, regarding Berk. Now with nearly a whole day to search, she hoped she would come across something pertinent.</p><p>When she entered the room she found rows and rows of shelves, all filled to the brim with old dusty books and even older scrolls. The shelves and books were covered in layers of dust and it looked as if some of them hadn't been touched in probably many years. She inhaled deeply as she took in the overwhelming sight before her, not knowing where to even start.</p><p>"Well," she muttered to herself, "I guess anywhere is as good a start as any." She began to walk along the rows of shelves trying to decipher how exactly the archive had been categorized and trying to decide where best to start. She realized the shelves were organized by reign. She began to search for the shelf that would contain the history of Mairead's father, King Haemish the first. After she located where she thought was best to start, she began to slowly leaf through the hundreds of books and scrolls upon the shelf.</p><p>She settled on a compilation of the kings laws and decrees from around the time the Berkans had been in DunBroch. She thought surely this book would contain the decree of banishment for the Berkans which would, no doubt, state the reason for said banishment. She carried the heavy book to a nearby table and began to leaf through its pages. As she did so she was suddenly distracted by the sound of the door opening and closing, and then the sound of feet moving quickly and clanging against the stone floor in her direction. She looked up when the sound of the footsteps grew closer. Her mother came around the corner of the tall shelf with a book in hand and then stopped suddenly in unexpected surprise.</p><p>"Merida," she said, "what are ye doing here?"</p><p>"Well, I...I was just looking to see if I could find anything about Mairead or the Viking boy," Merida replied, "since I had some free time I just thought it's as good a time as any." Merida gazed at her mother curiously.</p><p>"What are ye doing here," she questioned curiously.</p><p>"Well I, uh," Elinor held up the book in her hand, "I was returning this to its rightful place." She looked at Merida and smiled.</p><p>"I told ye I'd help ye find the truth," Elinor continued, "I've been looking through these old books a little each day since ye told me of Mairead's journal." Merida gazed at her mother in surprise.</p><p>"Ye have been doing all that," Merida questioned, "for me?" Elinor nodded.</p><p>"I've been meaning to tell ye," Elinor replied, "but ye've been spending so much time away from the castle lately, I just haven't had the chance." Merida blushed slightly with her mother's words. This did not go unnoticed by Elinor.</p><p>"Well then," Merida replied as she cleared her throat, "have ye found anything?" Elinor shook her head.</p><p>"Not a thing thus far," Elinor replied in slight frustration. She turned from Merida and replaced the book upon the shelf.</p><p>"Not even a real mention of dragons," Elinor said, "save a few official complaints of livestock being stolen by the beasts." Merida furrowed her brow in thought as her mother spoke.</p><p>"It's strange," Elinor continued, "I mean from yer father's stories and what ye've read in that journal, it almost seems that there is a rather large chunk of history missing from the archive of King Haemish's reign." Merida furrowed her brow as she thought over her mother's words.</p><p>"Mum," Merida questioned, "do ye think it's possible that someone may have deliberately hidden the history of the Berkan Vikings in Dunbroch."</p><p>"I suppose it's possible," Elinor replied, "though I don't see the point of doing so."</p><p>"I can't help but think this must have something to do with the fact that they were banished," Merida replied, "and I just know the banishment has to do with Mairead and Hiccup's affair." Elinor gazed at her daughter curiously.</p><p>"Mum, what if someone wanted to erase the Vikings completely from Dunbroch history so no one would find the truth," Merida suggested, "I mean maybe the Vikings were unjustly banished, or maybe they were accused of something but they were innocent!" Elinor shook her head in disbelief.</p><p>"Well innocent is a strong word to describe a Viking," Elinor replied, "banishing them was probably the smartest decision that King Haemish could have made, I mean, considering the threat this Viking boy posed to his daughter." Merida looked at her mother in concern.</p><p>"A threat," Merida said questioningly, "Hiccup loved Mairead...what threat could he have posed?"</p><p>"Now Merida, I know ye are quite taken with this journal," Elinor replied in a calm, yet firm tone, "Mairead's account of this Hiccup and their supposed star crossed love might seem romantic but heed my words Merida, Vikings cannot be trusted ever! Believe me the banishment of the fiends was well meant."</p><p>"Well meant," Merida questioned, "how can ye say that mother? Ye read the journal, Mairead said the Berkan's were different than other Vikings, she said they were more like us."</p><p>"They were probably just better at deceiving than most," Elinor replied.</p><p>"Ye think that Hiccup deceived Mairead," Merida questioned, "ye think the love she had for him was nothin' more than a...a lie?"</p><p>"Perhaps Mairead's love was real to her Merida, but love is blind sometimes," Elinor replied, "especially for a young girl who was inexperienced and naive; a girl who only could see what she wanted to see!"</p><p>"Naive," Merida replied in dismay, "inexperienced?" Merida could feel her heart flinch as she gazed at her mother. All her past fears about love and duty came flooding back to her mind making her heart feel heavy. She had become so caught up in her growing feelings for Hiccup that she had pushed from her mind the harsh reality. Even if Hiccup did have feelings for her, he was still a Viking. Her mother's rant only made it abundantly clear that Hiccup would never be accepted, not by her, not by the Lords, and not by the people of Dunbroch.</p><p>Merida dropped her eyes to the floor, she could feel the lump in her throat return and an ache in her chest that felt almost as if it were difficult to breathe. She suddenly felt the overwhelming need to prove her mother wrong, to try to make her see that her black and white view of all Vikings was flawed. She raised her eyes to her mother defiantly and gazed at her with a look of determination on her face.</p><p>"Do ye honestly believe that mother," Merida questioned, "that Mairead didn't know love from a...a hole in the ground? Do ye truly believe that Mairead was so naive that she didn't even know her own heart?"</p><p>"That's not what I'm saying Merida," Elinor replied.</p><p>"Then what exactly are ye sayin' mother," Merida questioned as she crossed her arms over her chest.</p><p>"I believe Mairead was too young to know what real true love is," Elinor replied, "she had a free spirit and longed for adventure. I think in her longing for freedom she found companionship with this Viking boy, perhaps she mistook that for love."</p><p>"But she was nae too young to be betrothed to someone she didnae love at all," Merida questioned, "she was nae too young to be married off and take the throne!"</p><p>"Merida," Elenor started.</p><p>"And what of me then mother," Merida continued, "do ye think the same of me? Am I not just as much a free spirit as she was? Do I not long for the same freedom she did! Does that make me easily deceived? Do ye think that I would be so naive that I could just fall for someone just 'cause they told me what I wanted to hear? Do ye think that because I have no experience with love that I'd be incapable of seeing what's real and true and what's not?"</p><p>Elinor gazed at her daughter questioningly. She could clearly see the anguish on her daughters face. She wondered why what she had said had affected Merida in such a personal way.</p><p>"What's this about then," Elinor questioned softly, "what I said about the situation with Mairead has nothing to do with ye lass. What's got ye in such a state, is there something ye want to tell me?" Merida gazed at her mother trying her hardest to keep from showing her emotions.</p><p>"Nothing Mum," Merida replied, "I...I'm just tryin' to make my point. The Vikings from Berk were different, I know it just as Mairead did. I know it in my heart! I...I mean I just know Mairead believed it just from everything she said. She wasn't fooled into believing something that wasn't true! I know ye dislike Vikings for reasons of yer own, but that doesn't mean that they are all the same! It doesn't mean there aren't some that are different than most." Elenor gazed at her daughter in disbelief and worry.</p><p>"Dislike," Elinor repeated the word in a surprised tone, "Dislike isnae pure tough enough a word tae describe how ah feel about vikings."</p><p>"Mum," Merida replied, "please just put yer pride aside and listen."</p><p>"No, ye listen to me lass," Elinor interrupted firmly, "A've seen vikings, Merida, real vikings, nae this ridiculous romantic version o' thaim, they're brutal 'n' vicious fiends, they wid stop at nothin' tae git whit thay waant! There is na act tae violent, 'n' na line thay wouldn't cross!" Elinor continued to gaze at her daughter with an expression that was dead serious.</p><p>"The ideas that journal has put in yer head are dangerous and foolish and would only get ye into trouble if by fate ye should meet a Viking," Elenor continued, "the scandal of Mairead was nae that she fell in love but that her misplaced trust might have cost her the kingdom maybe even her life! For I am certain that this Viking boy from Berk knowingly took advantage of her naivety. I believe that it's more likely that he pursued her just to steal the throne out from under her."</p><p>Merida gazed at her mother in disbelief.</p><p>"No, I don't believe that," Merida replied, "Mairead loved Hiccup, and he loved her! He didn't care that she was a princess, he didn't care that she would be queen. He only wanted her heart and nothin' more! They were true soul mates, but it was people like ye that tore them apart!"</p><p>"People like me," Elinor replied, "people like me."</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied defiantly, "people like ye, who'd rather judge a whole population of people for what others have done!"</p><p>"Do nae ye dare imply that I'm intolerant Merida," Elinor replied, "people like me are nae the enemy. It's people like them that are the enemy! I've seen their brand of tolerance first hand! They kill, they torture, the brutalize! I pray ye ne'er see that first hand. I pray ye ne'er meet a Viking in yer life!"</p><p>Merida was at a complete loss of words after her mother's statement. She felt as though her emotions were spinning wildly out of control. She gazed at her mother trying her best to keep herself composed. But she could feel tears filling her eyes. She had found a true friend in Hiccup. Even if that was all they'd ever be, she wished to keep him in her life, but now she feared their parting was inevitable. If her own mother could not accept him simply because he was a Viking, what chance did she stand to convince the Lords or even her people to accept him and the other Berkans.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor said questioningly, as she noticed the look of near heartbreak on her daughter's face. Without a word Merida pushed past her mother and ran quickly from the room.</p><p>"Merida wait," Elinor called out. But Merida was already gone.</p><p>—</p><p>Hiccup arrived back at camp to find Eret and Fishlegs just finishing breakfast. As soon as he dismounted Toothless, the dragon ran ahead and playfully greeted Skullcrusher and Meatlug. Hiccup smiled in the dragon's direction as he headed over to the campfire. He stood before his friends with a slight smile on his face as he dropped the bag from his shoulder before them. The two men looked up at him curiously.</p><p>"Nice of you to join us mate," Eret greeted, "what had you up so early...or who rather." Without a word Hiccup rolled his eyes but the smirk never left his face. Eret smirked back.</p><p>"Right," Eret replied, "none of my business." He sighed heavily as he tried to decipher Hiccup's mood.</p><p>"Well we saved some food if you'd like some," Eret replied, "hope you like rabbit."</p><p>"No thanks," Hiccup sighed as he sat down across from them, "I already ate." He leaned forward toward the bag as he smiled in their direction.</p><p>"But if you guys are still hungry," he flipped the bag open revealing its contents, "I have plenty extra." Both men simultaneously gazed in awe at the delicious sight before them.</p><p>"What is this," Fishlegs asked as he slowly lifted a sweet roll from the bag. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"I believe that's called a 'sweet roll'," Hiccup replied with an amused grin, "careful though, they are Toothless' favorite. He'll probably get annoyed if you eat them all on him." Slowly Fishlegs bit into the pastry with a look of surprised satisfaction on his face. He chewed it slowly savoring every morsel.</p><p>"This is like heaven," Fishlegs sighed, "literally the best thing I've ever eaten!"</p><p>Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"Is this all from your princess then," Eret asked smugly as he bit into an apple. Hiccup nodded with a small grin on his face. Eret nodded.</p><p>"She must really like you Hic," Eret replied.</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied with a shrug, "like I said, we're friends." He stood and grabbed three more sweet rolls and headed in Toothless' direction. He offered a sweet roll to each of the dragons. Skull crusher and Meatlug sniffed them warily while Toothless devoured his whole. Hiccup chuckled. He turned around only to come face to face with Eret. His smile slowly faded.</p><p>"Why didn't you invite your friend back to camp with you," Eret inquired. Hiccup huffed in annoyance.</p><p>"I couldn't," Hiccup replied simply.</p><p>"What do you mean, you couldn't," Eret questioned.</p><p>"I mean, I would have," Hiccup replied, "but I...I didn't actually get to see her today."</p><p>"Why's that," Eret asked. Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Not that it's any of your business," Hiccup replied, "but at the moment she...well, she's not technically allowed to leave the castle grounds right now." Eret furrowed his brow at Hiccup.</p><p>"Why's that?"</p><p>"Because," Hiccup huffed, "I...I uh I might have, sorta, gotten her into a little bit of trouble with her parents." Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"Hic you dog," Eret chuckled haughtily. Hiccup pushed past Eret in annoyance.</p><p>"It's not like that," Hiccup groaned, "she...she just stayed out past her curfew...that's it." Eret smirked at Hiccup as he followed after him.</p><p>"And what reason exactly did you have to keep a princess past her curfew," he questioned. Hiccup turned to look at Eret.</p><p>"Look it...it's no big deal," he replied, "we...we just lost track of time and...and then fell asleep and accidentally stayed out until morning." Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"No wonder her parents were angry," Eret chuckled. Hiccup huffed and turned away.</p><p>"Give me a break Eret," Hiccup groaned, "I told you it isn't like that, at all! We are just friends, that's it! There is nothing going on! I...I mean I haven't even told her that I..." Hiccup paused as he caught himself before he had said too much.</p><p>"Told her what Hiccup," Eret questioned.</p><p>"I...I mean, I meant...nothing, never mind," Hiccup huffed in a flustered tone, "ya know, why am I even explaining this to you. It's...</p><p>"None of my business," Eret interrupted, "I know, I know. Alright, Hic, alright, I get it, sorry I asked." He paused and gazed at Hiccup for a long moment.</p><p>"But ya know," he smiled sincerely, "if ya ask me, ya know, speaking as a friend; I think if you really do like this girl, you should probably tell her so." Hiccup glared at him.</p><p>"Yeah well, I didn't ask you," Hiccup groaned as he crossed his arms over his chest, "and we're not friends." Eret's smirk faded with Hiccup's harsh words. Hiccup turned and started walking away.</p><p>"So after everything you said yesterday," Eret called after him, "we're still at odds then. You still think of me as your rival. Hiccup paused as he sighed heavily. He turned back to Eret with an annoyed expression.</p><p>"No, we're not rivals," Hiccup replied, "but we're not friends either." Eret nodded as he dropped his eyes to the ground in disappointment. Hiccup sighed heavily.</p><p>"Look, I'm sorry," Hiccup went on, "the truth is, I...I don't know what we are right now. It's been a really long time since I could even be in the same room as you. I can't just jump back into the old days. It's just gonna take longer then a day to...to be anything close to friends again. I'm sorry but it's the best I can do right now."</p><p>"That's, understandable," Eret replied solemnly, "I guess even baby steps is a step forward, right." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"So, how long is your princess grounded for anyway," Eret questioned changing the subject quickly, "any chance Fish and I will get to meet her while we're here?" Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>"After today," Hiccup sighed as he continued to walk in Fishlegs direction, "two more days, but I think you guys should probably leave before then."</p><p>"Why is that," Eret questioned. Hiccup sat down on the log beside Fishlegs and looked up at Eret."</p><p>"Long story short," Hiccup replied, "it's because Berk was banished from returning to Dunbroch shortly after my great great grandfather came here with his clan. So technically we're all outlaws here and we could get into a lot of trouble if they catch us."</p><p>"Banished," Fishlegs questioned in sudden interest. Eret furrowed his brow as he thought over Hiccup's words.</p><p>"Why exactly was Berk banished," Eret questioned, "what happened?"</p><p>"Well I don't really know exactly," Hiccup replied, "I...I mean that's sorta what Merida and I are trying to figure out. We have a pretty strong suspicion that it may have had something to do with our great great grandparents. Apparently when they met Mairead was already betrothed to someone else.</p><p>"Wait, wait, wait," Eret replied, "your telling me that your great great grandfather had an affair with her great great grandmother?" Hiccup nodded.</p><p>Pretty much," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Wait, you said the girl in the drawing is Merida's grandmother," Fishlegs replied as the thought suddenly occurred to him, "do you think the girl in your dream is also Merida's grandmother?"</p><p>"I'm fairly certain she is," Hiccup replied, "but that's not even the weirdest part." Both Eret and Fishlegs gazed at Hiccup in intrigue.</p><p>"Okay so you know the dreams I've been having," Hiccup asked. Fishlegs nodded.</p><p>"Yeah," Fish replied curiously.</p><p>"Well, Merida has been having practically the same dreams," Hiccup replied, "but instead of the woman she sees a viking."</p><p>"Wait, what," Fish questioned in surprise, "okay just let me get this straight, you see a woman in your dream that you believe is Merida's great great grandmother, so...does that mean the Viking in her's is...</p><p>"My great great grandfather," Hiccup replied with a smirk, "yeah that's what we think."</p><p>"That's crazy Hic," Fish replied in disbelief, "it's...it's almost like you were meant to meet her, like...like it was fate or something. Hiccup couldn't help but to smile slightly at what Fishlegs had said, but his friend's choice of words held a much deeper meaning to Hiccup.</p><p>"It's almost like your great great grandfather and her great great grandmother were leading you both to find each other," Fish marveled, "but...why?"</p><p>"Your guess is as good as mine," Hiccup shrugged, "we think maybe they want us to find the truth about what happened to them, why Berk was banished, and maybe try to find some way to set it right. I mean, maybe our grandparents want us to...to finish what they started or maybe they just want us to find some way to expose the truth about what really happened."</p><p>"Okay," Eret said, "so we're banished from Dunbroch, but aren't you forgetting something?"</p><p>"What," Hiccup huffed as he turned his eyes back to Eret.</p><p>You are friends with the princess," Eret replied, "couldn't you just...have her speak to her parents, and have them un-banish us?"</p><p>"That would be a great idea," Hiccup replied, "except for the fact that Merida's mother, the Queen, hates all Vikings."</p><p>"So," Eret replied.</p><p>"So what do you think she'll do to me the moment Merida brings a Viking home," Hiccup questioned sarcastically, "she'll have me locked up, and probably order my execution. And Merida would probably never be able to leave the castle again just for speaking to me. She'd practically be a prisoner in her own home!"</p><p>"Well I can see that being a problem if you were on your own," Eret replied, "but now that me and Fish are here, you could at least try and if things go sour, we could bail you out at or at the very least head back to Berk to get the other riders."</p><p>"That's your idea, bring the rest of the riders to rescue me, and...and practically risk starting a war with Dunbroch," Hiccup replied firmly, "no, not a chance."</p><p>"But Hic," Eret started.</p><p>"No Eret," Hiccup replied, "look...we have to handle this whole thing carefully, ya know. I...I don't want her parents to look at me and just see some war-driven viking! I...I want them to accept me. Otherwise..."</p><p>"Otherwise you risk never seeing Merida again," Eret replied. Hiccup nodded as he gazed at Eret with a serious expression on his face.</p><p>"We have to bide our time," Hiccup replied, "for now anyway, maybe at least until we find out why Berk was banished to begin with."</p><p>"Okay," Eret replied, "we'll be careful then, and me and Fish will help you find the truth." He held is hand out to Hiccup. Hiccup paused for a long moment as he continued to gaze in Eret's direction. He seemed to be weighing his decision carefully. After a moment or two Hiccup leaned forward and took Eret's hand in a Viking handshake.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied as he glanced back and forth between the two men, "but the second there is trouble, you guys need to leave."</p><p>"Deal," Eret replied.</p><p>"This is great," Fishlegs said excitedly, "nothing like a good mystery to solve!" Both Hiccup and Eret chuckled at their friend.</p><p>"I mean, who knows, Hic," Eret replied, "maybe if we find the truth Merida's father might even lift the banishment. Then you'd be free to be with your princess." Hiccup's heart fluttered with Eret's words.</p><p>"Alright," Hiccup replied as he glanced back and forth between his two friends, "I guess I should probably fill you guys in with everything we know so far."</p><p>"We're all ears Hic," Eret replied with a smirk.</p><p>—-</p><p>Elinor sat at her loom, trying her best to focus on the tapestry she had been working on, but try as she may she was far too distracted by her concern over Merida. She was worried about Merida, after their unfortunate altercation in the castle archive. She had not meant to be at odds with her daughter, but she also had not expected Merida to react in such a way.</p><p>When Merida had first shown her the journal of Mariead, Elinor had thought that it could be a good way for Merida to connect with her past. Perhaps finding some common ground with her great great grandmother might put Merida's own future into perspective. She would see that she was just as capable of ruling as her great great grandmother was, and perhaps she'd gain a little inspiration from her predecessor as well. After all, Mairead had ruled successfully on her own for many years after her husband had passed and, despite the objection of the Lords for doing so, she was beloved by all of her people.</p><p>But instead of finding inspiration, Merida had become increasingly infatuated with the calamitous and highly scandalous love story between Mairead and this Viking boy. It was the fact that Merida had romanticized the scandal that worried Elinor the most. Somehow from her grandmother's words Merida had it in her head that the Berkan Viking's were different from others of their kind. This was especially concerning for Elinor. Having experienced the extreme brutality of a Viking raid first hand, and having lived through a war with them, Elinor found Merida's outlandish ideas about these Berkan Vikings quite worrisome.</p><p>But this wasn't the only thing that worried her. Elinor could not help but to wonder if something more was going on with Merida as well. After all she hadn't quite been herself for days. She was off riding all the time and when she was home she was distracted for much of the time. She barely ate and seemed to often wander about alone. Something was clearly bothering her, yet she would not confide in Elinor about it. For some reason Merida still felt that she couldn't talk to her mother about certain things, and this frustrated Elinor to no end. Then there was also the fact that Merida had taken Elinor's statement about Mairead being fooled by the Viking boy so personally. Elinor simply could not understand why her words had affected Merida in such a way.</p><p>She was distracted suddenly from her thoughts when her sitting room door creaked open and Fergus walked in. Elinor sighed but remained silent as he approached her.</p><p>"Well," Fergus sighed, "that's the first fight ye two have had in a while."</p><p>"Aye," Elinor replied, "where is she presently?"</p><p>"Out trotting Angus along the green," Fergus replied, "she must be really steamed, she hasn't come back in since she ran outta the archives." Elinor shook her head and sighed heavily as she turned to Fergus.</p><p>"I don't know what to do Fergus," Elinor replied, "everything I say is wrong in her eyes."</p><p>"Now dear ye expected this didn't ye," Fergus replied, "Ye knew she'd react this way to the news from the Lords, but she just needs to blow off some steam and she'll see what's right." Elinor furrowed her brow at her husband in slight confusion.</p><p>"I haven't told her about that yet Fergus," Elinor replied. Fergus raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"Oh...well...the way she ran out, I...I thought for certain that ye broke the news," Fergus replied, "what was this fight about then?"</p><p>"Believe it or not," Elinor replied, "Vikings."</p><p>"Vikings ye say," Fergus replied in confusion.</p><p>"Aye," Elinor replied in frustration, "ever since ye told her of the Vikings of Berk coming here to rid the land of dragons, she's had it in her head that the Berkan Vikings are somehow different then all the rest! She was in the archives trying to find out why they were banished and she wants to prove that they were misjudged in some way. "</p><p>"Is that right," Fergus replied questioningly.</p><p>"This morning I simply reiterated to her the very nature of Vikings," Elinor went on, "that they are evil, and selfish and dishonest brutes! That they simply can't be trusted and...and that Berk was most likely rightfully banished." Fergus nodded as he listened.</p><p>"I have told her these things about Vikings many times, I've warned her of them practically her whole life," Elinor went on, "and now she hears one story that tells her different and...and she just throws everything I've ever taught her out the window!"</p><p>"Ye know dear," Fergus replied, "believe it or not, great nana felt the same about the Berkans as Merida." Elinor looked at her husband curiously.</p><p>"She always said that the decision to banish Berk was regrettable," Fergus replied, "she held that position firm til her dying day, perhaps she was right."</p><p>"How can ye even suggest such a thing Fergus," Elinor replied, "ye've fought vikings first hand, ye know what they're like. Ye know the viciousness Vikings possess! And I...I have tried a lifetime to forget the savagery I saw first hand that day they invaded my village."</p><p>"Aye dear," Fergus replied, "yer right about that, but those Northern Invaders were not from Berk. One must wonder, if we had kept our alliance with the Berkan Vikings, perhaps the Northern Invaders wouldn't hae stood a chance. With their help perhaps that war wouldn't hae dragged out quite so long."</p><p>"Ye honestly believe the Berkan Vikings were different from any other Vikings ye have met," Elinor questioned.</p><p>"Well, I hae no reason to believe otherwise," Fergus replied, "based on all of my great nana's accounts, the Vikings of Berk were a civilized bunch, and not much different from the people o' Dunbroch. Elinor shook her head as she contemplated heavily on her husband's words.</p><p>"If what ye say is true Fergus," she replied, "then it begs the question, why were the Berkans banished to begin with. Banishment was likely not a decision that King Haemish would've made lightly. There had to have been a legitimate reason for it."</p><p>"Aye," Fergus replied, "it's a question I've tried to answer many times, unfortunately my great nana took the answer with her to the grave." Elinor nodded as she thought about what Fergus had told her. Perhaps she should have took the time to listen to Merida instead of becoming so caught up on her own personal feelings about Vikings in general. Perhaps she herself had overreacted.</p><p>"Merida is as smart as a whip dear," Fergus replied, "it would be a cold day in hell afore a' body could pull th' wool over her eyes. Not only that, but she knows how to fight as well as any Scotsman. She can defend herself if ever it came to that." Elenor nodded as she listened.</p><p>"Besides," Fergus went on, "after the Berkan Vikings left, they ne'er returned and no one has heard o' them since. They say the dragons were so tired o' being hunted that they descended on Berk and wiped them all out in a single raid. So the chances of her meetin' one is slim to none. So what's the harm in lettin' her investigate."</p><p>"Well, I...I suppose yer right," Elenor sighed, "I just can't help but worry, she's my little girl Fergus, if anything ever happened to her, I don't know what I'd do."</p><p>"Aye dear," Fergus replied, "but ye forget she's not a wee lass anymore, she has her own mind, and her own heart. Ye can't decide either for her. And if either has already been decided, then tellin' her any different will only push her away."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>*Important detail* The symbol in the wax on Merida’s letter is the symbol on the Dunbroch flag.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 17</p><p>"So, let me get this straight," Fishlegs replied, "you're telling me that the dreams you've been having have been changing since you got here." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Yeah," he replied, "the second one I had seemed more like a memory, I guess. I'm pretty sure I saw some sort of ritual that may have been part of the binding spell." Eret sat quietly across from Hiccup and Fishlegs listening in interest to their conversation.</p><p>"A memory," Fish questioned.</p><p>"Well not my memory," Hiccup replied, "obviously that would be impossible. It was more like I was being shown something that happened in the past. I'm sure the two people I saw performing the ritual were my grandfather and Mairead."</p><p>"Okay," Fish nodded as he thought over Hiccup's words.</p><p>"But the dream I had yesterday was different than the others," Hiccup replied, "it almost seemed a bit random. The other dreams had everything to do with Mairead and my grandfather, but this one just confused the hell out of me."</p><p>"But you said that Mairead appeared to you again," Fish replied, "you said she spoke to you again." Hiccup nodded as his mind drifted back to Mairead from his most recent dream. He thought of her face and her haunting blue eyes; he recalled the way he felt in her presence. He thought about how strange it was to look into those pale blue orbs that were nearly identical to those of Mairead's great, great granddaughter. He couldn't explain how strange it was to know he was looking at Mairead, but to feel as if he were looking at Merida. It was almost as if he had feelings for them both. But how could that be? He wondered once again if the spirit of his grandfather was somehow influencing his feelings, or even manipulating them outright. If that were the case, could his feelings for Merida possibly be just a byproduct of said influence? He shook his head as he tried to banish the thought from his mind. He refused to believe that his feelings for Merida weren't real. Still the question remained. Why did he feel for Mairead the same way he felt for Merida? He looked up at Fish as he sorted through his thoughts.</p><p>"She did," Hiccup replied, "but it was different this time, what she told me was not about her or my grandfather. It honestly seemed like some sort of a...a prophecy I guess. And it was all about this Adag place or maybe person, I...I'm not even really sure."</p><p>"So, what did she say exactly," Fish asked. Hiccup reached into his pocket and pulled out his notebook. He quickly opened to the specific page and began to read aloud.</p><p>...</p><p>"The House of Adag is lost, exiled and forgotten.</p><p>It is said an Adag will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond.</p><p>Heavy is the heart torn by pride and only can be mended by forgiveness' healing hand.</p><p>It's so much bigger than us Hiccup, we were only the start of it.</p><p>The house of Adag will rise and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable. For the link that binds them was forged in love."</p><p>…</p><p>Fish nodded as he thought heavily on Hiccup's words.</p><p>"It's almost like some sort of a riddle or something," Fish replied, "I think we just need to figure out what Adag means. It could be a name, of a place or person. From what you've said though, it sounds more like the name of a clan to me. Then again, the name could also be some sort of an anagram for something else entirely." Hiccup nodded as he thought about it.</p><p>"Oh, come on mate," Eret interrupted, "clearly it has something to do with the banishment." Both Hiccup and Fish looked over at Eret in curiosity.</p><p>"Only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond," Eret repeated, "the house of Adag will rise and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable. It only makes sense; the two clans must be Dunbroch and Berk." Hiccup gazed at Eret as he thought over what he had said.</p><p>"Think about it Hic," Eret replied, "you said from the start, you think that you and Merida are being led to find the truth and maybe set things right. Maybe this is all about renewing the bond between Dunbroch and Berk."</p><p>"But what is Adag," Hiccup questioned, "the house of Adag, an Adag will lead them home, the house of Adag will rise?" Eret paused a moment as he thought about it.</p><p>"Well," you said they speak a little differently here, maybe it's the word for Berk, or Viking." Hiccup nodded as he thought about it. He guessed it was possible, he'd have to ask Merida to be sure. But Eret's suggestion didn't quite explain anything else he saw in his dream.</p><p>"But that doesn't explain what I saw," Hiccup replied, "I saw a village full of people and dragons, and the name above the gate was Adag. And there was an emblem of a Tide glider above the gate too."</p><p>"Well hasn't Berk's crest always been a dragon," Eret questioned, "does it matter which one? Maybe it used to be a tide glider then they changed it a little over time. I mean maybe the name of Berk was changed too."</p><p>"No, that wouldn't make sense," Hiccup replied, "I mean it wouldn't have changed since my great, great grandfather's time. And Mairead still called our people Berk in her journal."</p><p>"Okay," Eret said as he thought about it more, "maybe it's not Berk exactly, but it must have some connection to Berk."</p><p>"Hey you know it does kinda sound like your name a bit," Fish replied with a slight chuckle.</p><p>"What's that," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Well, I mean the way you pronounce it," Fish replied, "it...it sort of sounds like your name."</p><p>Hiccup furrowed his brow in confusion.</p><p>"Oh, come on," Fish replied, "don't you hear it, Adag, Haddock, Adag, Haddock. It's like Haddock with a silent H." Both Hiccup and Eret gazed at Fish with an intrigued expression on their faces.</p><p>"That's weird," Hiccup replied as he thought it over, "it actually kinda does sound similar. I...I didn't really notice before." Hiccup wondered if there could be any significance or if it was only a coincidence. Though after all he had been through recently, he was beginning to wonder if coincidences ever truly existed at all. Lately it seemed more like everything surrounding him had been laid out by careful and strategic design. It was like a puzzle of grand design; he need only find the missing piece that would lay everything in its place. One thing was for certain, he had to talk to Merida, he had to find out if anything from his dream would spark anything for her. Maybe she already knew what or who Adag was. Maybe the answer was somewhere in the archives of Dunbroch. He hoped that when she read his letter, that she would search for the answers they needed, and he prayed she'd have some luck finding it. He suddenly remembered that he needed to head to their meeting place soon.</p><p>"Right well, it seems we have more questions than answers once again," Hiccup replied as he stood from his place, "but maybe Merida found something in the archives, she said she'd look." Hiccup then headed over to where Toothless was as the others watched.</p><p>"I gotta go," Hiccup said, "I'll be back in a little while."</p><p>"Sure thing Hic," Fish replied with a nod, "see ya."</p><p>As Fishlegs stood and headed off to tend to Meatlug, Eret's attention remained on Hiccup. He followed him over to Toothless and observed as Hiccup prepared to head out to wherever he was supposed to meet this princess of his.</p><p>Eret couldn't quite explain why he found himself so curious about this princess. Maybe it was the fact that Hiccup had been slightly less than forthcoming about her that piqued Eret's curiosity. Perhaps it was the way Hiccup spoke of her that intrigued him. Or perhaps, more likely, it was because the prospect of Hiccup finally moving on would make things just a little easier on he and Astrid. Regardless of the reason Eret couldn't help but to be more than a little curious about this girl. Despite his objections to the mere idea, Hiccup seemed more than a little taken with her. Whether Hiccup admitted it or not, Eret could clearly see that there was something more going on than Hiccup would avow. As Hiccup finished strapping the saddle to Toothless' back, Eret approached him.</p><p>"Off to see your princess again, eh mate," Eret said. Hiccup glanced up at him briefly and rolled his eyes, eliciting a chuckle from Eret.</p><p>"I'm not meeting her," Hiccup replied with a hint of annoyance, "I told you she can't leave the castle, she's..."</p><p>"Grounded, yes, I know, I know," Eret replied as he crossed his arms over his chest. Eret continued to gaze in Hiccup's direction as he prepared to mount Toothless.</p><p>"Well," Eret replied, "do you mind if I tag along then mate?" Hiccup looked up at Eret once more with a suspicious expression on his face. Eret grinned.</p><p>"It's just, Skull Crusher," Eret replied, "he, uh, he's getting a bit stir crazy is all. He could use the exercise."</p><p>"I don't know Eret," Hiccup replied distractedly, "I'm not all that sure I really feel up to company right now."</p><p>"Come on Hic, I'm sure Toothless wouldn't mind the company," Eret said as he patted the dragon on the neck," right Toothless?" The dragon grinned at Eret and nodded enthusiastically. Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at the dragon.</p><p>"Traitor," he mumbled under his breath.</p><p>"I mean seeing as though you're not meeting up with your girl and all," Eret replied with a slight smirk. Hiccup seemed perplexed by his statement.</p><p>"Well, you know," Eret went on haughtily, "I just figured if you were actually meeting up with her, you know, you'd probably want a little privacy, but since you're not..." Hiccup groaned.</p><p>"I told you Eret," Hiccup huffed, "there is nothing going on between her and I, so please, just stop insinuating that there is."</p><p>"Whatever you say mate," Eret replied with the shake of his head. Hiccup quickly mounted Toothless, then looked down at Eret. He sighed heavily as he rolled his eyes once again.</p><p>"You coming or what," Hiccup questioned. Eret smiled.</p><p>"Absolutely," he replied enthusiastically. Eret quickly mounted Skull Crusher and followed after Toothless.<br/>__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br/>Castle Dunbroch</p><p>Merida didn't waste time this morning. To avoid being seen by her mother, she went straight to her room after she returned from the meeting place in the woods. She quickly entered then closed and locked the door behind her. She removed her hood then pulled her hair out from beneath her cloak and flipped the long cascading curls over her shoulder. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out the neatly folded letter and purple flower that Hiccup had left for her. She smiled at the sight of the purple flower as a slight blush arose on her freckled cheeks. She lifted the flower to her nose and took a whiff of its sweet fragrance before laying it down upon her vanity. She removed her cloak and hung it up. She then sat down upon the soft cushioned chair beside her fireplace with the letter in hand. She carefully unfolded the paper and started to read.</p><p>—</p><p>Dear Merida,</p><p>To begin with, I am really sorry that I worried you. When I showed up the other night, I had a lot weighing on my mind. I didn't exactly intend to lay all my stupid drama on you though, and I certainly didn't mean for you to lose any sleep over it. I really just wanted to see you because, well, because you're really good at distracting me from all of the negativity that I tend to dwell on.</p><p>I've been thinking a lot about what you wrote. In your letter, you mentioned that not a day has gone by since we met that I didn't have a smile on my face. I have to admit that your statement surprised me. I mean that's not necessarily the norm for me back home. If it's true then I can honestly say that it could only be because of you. I can't even remember the last time I was truly happy in Berk. Don't get me wrong I care about Berk and my people; Berk is and always will be my home after all. But even so, I've sort of always felt like a bit of an outcast. I mean yeah, I'm the Chief and my people chose me to lead but honestly sometimes it just feels like half of them are really just waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak.</p><p>See, as I told you before, I've been a screw up for most of my life and, honestly, sometimes it feels more like people are just waiting to see what I screw up next. Just about the only person in Berk who ever truly believed in me was Astrid and, as you know, I pretty much epically screwed that up too. Then, of course, back home it's near impossible to not be reminded of all my past mistakes and all my screw ups and all my epic fails. It's almost like there is just no escaping the past. Sometimes, it kind of makes moving on seem practically impossible.</p><p>But when I'm with you, it's different. When I'm with you I don't think about everything I've done wrong or the mistakes that I made. It's a lot easier to live in the moment when I don't have the past looming over me every day. When I'm around you, I just, well, I don't really know exactly how to explain it but it sort of feels like I'm just free in a way. It's like I'm free to be the real me without the worry of being judged. I don't get so caught up in my usual negativity and I'm happier just being around you.</p><p>Besides all that, you are just so easy to talk to. I mean, you don't just listen, you take it to heart and you don't judge me for how I feel about things. Then you somehow turn it around and help me see things from a different angle. No matter how complicated a problem feels to me, you just make everything seem so simple. So, when I came to you last night, I just told you everything that was bothering me and like the true friend that you are, you let me talk and you listened without judgement. And once again, you helped me to see things just a little bit clearer than I ever could have on my own.</p><p>I really must thank you for being such a good friend. The other night was the first time that I really actually ever told anyone like, everything, ya know. I mean I've talked to my mom a little before but I've never told her everything. Back in Berk it was just a lot easier to just keep it all to myself and to just avoid the subject all together. But then I didn't actually have anyone who I could just vent to about it before either. I mean not without them judging me or giving me some useless advice, or 'I told you so', or just some other stupid insensitive comment. I mean what do you expect from a bunch Vikings I guess, right. I suppose I could've told my mom a bit more but, I don't know, it's just a little awkward to talk to her about all of it. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't trust her or anything, it's just hard to talk to her about this in particular. I mean, considering everything she's been through. But all that is beside the point, I'm getting side tracked here and the whole story of my mom is just a really, really long story that I don't actually want to get into right now. Man, I'm actually rambling, aren't I? I can't even write a letter without rambling. I guess it could be worse I could be stuttering too, so at least there's that, I guess.</p><p>Basically, what I'm trying to say is, it felt really great to get all of that off my chest after keeping it all bottled up for so long. Just being able to talk to someone about all of it was exactly what I needed. I mean you didn't just listen you also helped me to see things differently. You've been a true friend to me since the moment we met. Okay, maybe not the very first few moments, ya know, while you were using me for target practice, but the first moments after you came to your senses.</p><p>Now, to answer your question, yes, I am doing much better than the other night and to be honest I really do owe most of that to you. Don't sell yourself short either, just because you've had it somewhat easier than me doesn't mean your advice is any less sound or any less useful. You may not think what you said was much but it was everything to me. I don't know how, but you always seem to know exactly what I need to hear. You're always honest and you're always sincere and I truly appreciate that about you.</p><p>Anyway, I want you to know that I took your advice. When I got back to camp, I forgave Eret. I mean, I don't really know that we are all that close to being friends again or anything, but we put an end to the feud at least. After you and I talked last night I realized what you told me was true, that letting go of the past and making peace with it is the only way to move on. More importantly, I realized that what I want more than anything is to finally move on from the past. I realized that I have spent far too much time just being angry about what happened, and brooding over all my mistakes and everything that went wrong before that I didn't think much about the future, or what I truly want. I know it seems like I want to avoid love at all costs, but the truth is that I really do want to find love again.</p><p>I've told myself for so long that I was better off alone, that I actually started to believe it. I mean I pretty much stopped believing in love altogether which is why I scoffed at the mere idea of finding my soulmate when my mother mentioned it. But the truth is, I do want that more than anything. I mean, I want a future with someone who truly cares about me. I want to feel like I belong, like I have a place to come home to where I feel complete. I want to feel like I matter to someone. I want to be with someone who believes in me even when I screw up.</p><p>You know, you were right about me before; I was afraid of love. I was afraid to move on, I was afraid to let my guard down, and I was afraid to take a chance on anything to do with love. I mean, honestly, after I lost Astrid, I was afraid to even believe that love was even possible for me. I guess I just felt like, what was the point, ya know. Of course, I would be a screw up at love. I mean, I was already a screw up at probably eighty five percent of the things I've done in my life so why would love be any different, right. But really, I just blamed myself for losing Astrid. I just thought, if I couldn't make things work with her than what chance would I have with someone else. It just seemed like it was a lot easier to give up. So, I told myself, love just wasn't in my cards, that I didn't want it or need it and I was fine on my own.</p><p>But after our many conversations on the subject, I'm beginning to realize that I was wrong about many things, particularly when it comes to love. I really do want love. I mean real, true love, like what my grandfather found with Mairead. You know, if I'm ever lucky enough to be given the opportunity again someday that is. I mean, who knows, maybe that day will be sooner than anticipated. I mean, like you said before, I just need to open my heart to the possibility right. So maybe by finally letting go of the past and admitting that I do want to find love eventually will help me to maybe recognize true love when or if it ever finds me. Honestly you put a lot of things in perspective for me last night. I mean for the first time in a very long time I feel like maybe finding love again isn't such a long shot after all. I mean, maybe there is still hope for me yet.</p><p>Okay so, moving on. That is fantastic news about the guard. I have been trying my best to be optimistic, but I have to admit I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to see you again. I mean, I feel bad enough that I got you into trouble with your parents to begin with, but if I couldn't see you again because of it, I'd feel even worse. You've become one of my best friends and above all else I don't want to lose you, especially over this. I mean I'm sure we could find some way around it. Sneaking up to your balcony was easy enough, but that could probably get us into more trouble. Then again, maybe it's time we should consider maybe introducing me to your parents. I mean, maybe it's time I try to appeal to their good graces. I've been thinking that coming forward might be better than if they were to discover that a Viking has been running around in their forest with their only daughter. Not that I mind at all, honestly there is probably nothing else I'd rather do; but given the circumstances, I don't think your parents would be all that thrilled about it if they were to find out on their own.</p><p>I'm fairly sure that I can convince them to just give me a chance to prove myself. I know your mom doesn't like Vikings and all, but I'm the exception, don't you think? I mean I can be charming, and witty, and charismatic. I'm fairly certain that I could win her over. I won you over, didn't I? All while you were trying to kill me, I might add! Just think about it okay, that's all I ask. We can talk about it more next time I see you.</p><p>I will cross my fingers that you find something useful in the archives. Actually, I might have something else you could look into as well. Last night I had another dream. I'll tell you all the details later. But Mairead came to me again and what she said confused me. She said, 'the house of Adag is lost. Exiled and forgotten, it is said an Adag will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond. I also saw the ruins of a village in my dream as well and the name above the gateway said Adag. Any ideas about this place or what she might be trying to tell us? Does any of the things she said ring any bells for you at all? I did record everything I could remember from the dream and I will show everything to you when I see you again, hopefully in the next couple days.</p><p>Oh, and to answer your other question, yes, Toothless was extremely happy to get his treats. You know, I have to say, given how the two of you met, he really has taken a liking to you. Maybe a dragon's heart can be won through his stomach too. I sure, wish I would have known that sooner, it probably would have made it a little easier to gain his trust in the beginning.</p><p>Anyway, he and I both thank you for thinking of us. We look forward to seeing you soon. I'm pretty certain that Toothless misses you terribly. As do I.</p><p>Hopefully the days pass quickly like you said. Until then I'll be thinking of you.</p><p>Your friend,</p><p>Hiccup.</p><p>...</p><p>Merida smiled slightly as she folded the letter once again. She was glad that Hiccup had confided in her, even more so knowing he had actually taken her advice. He was at least taking a step toward moving on and letting go of the past, which was all that she could have hoped for. Whether or not that meant he might ever see her as more than a friend still remained to be seen. Judging by all he had said in his letter, it seemed that he did truly care about her, and his feelings did seem sincere. Perhaps he could be feeling something more for her after all. Maybe everything in his past had hindered him from seeing what was right in front of him. Perhaps being less bogged down by his past, would help him to see things just a little bit clearer now, maybe he might even see her in a new light as well. Perhaps if he looked just a little closer, Hiccup might find in her all that he said he wanted. Everything he had said about his happiness being because of her caused her heart to flutter. She wondered what that meant, if anything. She sighed as she thought about it. But her smile slowly faded as the thought of the argument with her mother resurfaced. Her fear was that it didn't matter whether he reciprocated her feelings or not; he'd never be accepted. Above all else she feared that she was doomed just as her grandmother, to be forced to choose between her heart and her throne. It was a scenario she'd tried all her life to avoid. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly as she shook the thought from her mind.</p><p>Sitting around dwelling on her feelings would accomplish nothing. So, she pushed the thoughts away from her mind and pushed her feelings deep down in her heart and tried to focus on the task at hand. She had to find evidence that Berk was innocent, that they were wrongfully banished. Only then would she stand any chance of proving to her mother that Hiccup was different. She only needed her mother to hear her out. If she could just convince Elinor to give Hiccup a chance, she had no doubt that Hiccup would prove to her that he was different than other Vikings. The hard part would be getting her mother to listen. She opened the letter again and re-read what little details Hiccup had given her from his newest dream.</p><p>"The house of Adag," she muttered to herself. She furrowed her brow in contemplation. Why did that sound so familiar to her? Try as she might, she couldn't quite put her finger on where or how she had heard that name before. She wondered if she had learned it in one of her many princess lessons during her life. She sighed heavily in frustration. Having spent most of her lessons distracted and bored, she now wished in this moment she had tried to pay attention just a little bit more. She supposed she could swallow her pride and just ask her mother if it sounded familiar. Merida groaned at the thought. She had not spoken to her mother since their previous argument, and she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to approach her about anything regarding Vikings. She folded the paper once again and stuffed it into the sleeve of her dress. She decided she would just have to look through the library on her own for now, then if she had no luck, she could just try to bring it up to Elinor. Now with a plan in mind, Merida decided to head down to breakfast.<br/>__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</p><p>As Eret and Hiccup made their way through the woods, Hiccup remained quiet. Eret was trying to think of something, anything, to break the awkward silence.</p><p>"So," Eret said, "you uh, you really believe your great, great grandfather and her great, great grandmother are leading you both on the same path?" Hiccup nodded as he glanced briefly in Eret's direction.</p><p>"I know it sounds completely crazy," Hiccup replied turning his eyes back to the trail, "but yeah I do." Eret nodded as he thought over what Hiccup said.</p><p>"Why do you ask," Hiccup inquired. Eret shrugged.</p><p>"It's just interesting to me mate," Eret replied, "you know, not everyone can trace their ancestors back one generation let alone three or four, and not everyone has such a rich history as you. To top it all off there is a very good possibility that your great, great grandfather is trying to reach out to you from who even knows where. It's more than a little mind-blowing. I mean here you are receiving messages from your ancestors from beyond the grave, while some of us are lucky we even know who our parents are at all, let alone have any memories of them." Hiccup furrowed his brow as he glanced curiously in Eret's direction.</p><p>"What do you mean," Hiccup questioned, "don't you have memories of your parents?" Eret shrugged and turned his eyes back to the trail ahead.</p><p>"A few," Eret replied, "but not many."</p><p>"Just a few," Hiccup questioned skeptically, "but you're Eret, son of Eret, I mean I thought your father taught you everything about tracking dragons, wasn't he some big name in dragon hunting?" Eret remained quiet for a long moment as if deciding what to say. He sighed heavily as he turned to Hiccup.</p><p>"Look mate," Eret replied in a serious tone, "I'm gonna tell you something I've only ever told Astrid...so long as you keep it to yourself." Hiccup nodded as he gazed curiously in Eret's direction.</p><p>"I am the son of Eret, but I don't actually know my father, nor anything about him really, besides the fact that I'm named for him. I don't even really know that he actually was a dragon hunter. Truth is, I just...I made all that up," Eret replied with a shrug.</p><p>"You made it up," Hiccup questioned in surprise, "why on earth would you make something like that up?"</p><p>"Cause it sounded good," Eret replied simply, "I was young when I started trapping. I thought if people believed I came from a long line of trappers that they'd take me more seriously."</p><p>"I guess I can sort of understand that," Hiccup replied, "but why didn't you tell me the truth before now. I mean we were friends, weren't we? "</p><p>"And what difference would that have made," Eret replied, "besides make you think I was nothing more than a liar. Honestly, I've already lived with the lie for so long I don't even think twice about it anymore. I mean, I don't exactly lose any sleep over it at all and I don't want anyone's pity over it either. It is what it is mate."</p><p>"So, you don't know anything about your father at all," Hiccup questioned. Eret shook his head as he kept his eyes on the trail in front of them.</p><p>"Not a thing mate," Eret replied, "I mean I have a memory or two of him, he was hardly around much. He left pretty early on. Mum always said he was lost at sea, but I don't really know if that's true or not. All I know is he left one day and never came back. The only thing I have of him is some old pendant my mum gave me." Eret paused a moment before continuing. "To be perfectly honest I don't even really know for sure if it was even my father's or not. I mean it's entirely possible that my mother just told me that so I would just feel like I had something of him. "</p><p>"A pendent," Hiccup asked almost distractedly as he became suddenly lost in thought.</p><p>"Yeah," Eret replied, "I've worn it since I was eight years old, it's the only family heirloom I own really. My mum said it was my father's family crest, but I don't actually know if that's true or not. It's pretty depressing actually, that the only thing I have left of my family is some worthless trinket that has most likely no connection at all to my father."</p><p>"It's not worthless if it's important to you," Hiccup replied. Eret looked at him curiously. "You said you've worn it since you were eight years old, it must be important to you." Eret nodded as he thought about it.</p><p>"Astrid said nearly the same thing," Eret replied.</p><p>"Do you happen to have it with you," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"No," Eret replied, "why?" Hiccup shrugged his shoulders.</p><p>"Just curious," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Well, I only told Astrid the truth recently," Eret replied, "and she asked for the pendent. She said it didn't matter if the story my mother told me was true or not. The pendant was important enough that I kept it all these years and that we could use it to start our own family tradition. So, I gave it to Astrid to keep for the baby." Eret stopped himself when he realized he'd accidentally said too much. Hiccup looked over at him curiously.</p><p>"Uh, ya know," Eret tried to save himself, "in the future, uh, whenever we decide to have one." Hiccup felt his heart freeze for a moment as Eret's words sunk into his brain. He thought back to their argument the day before.</p><p>...</p><p>I offered...because I thought it'd be too dangerous. I... I didn't want her to come..."</p><p>"Too dangerous," Hiccup huffed, "for Astrid Hofferson." Eret just gazed at Hiccup.</p><p>"And you actually convinced her to stay in Berk and allow you to come after me on your own," Hiccup replied sarcastically.</p><p>Eret crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow at Hiccup.</p><p>"You know as well as I that there is no convincing her of anything," Eret replied, "we decided together that it was best that she stay and I go."</p><p>"Right," Hiccup replied flatly as he slipped his dagger back in its holster.</p><p>"Look she...she has her reasons," Eret replied cryptically. Hiccup turned to him in curiosity. He could see a look of genuine concern on Eret's face and maybe a bit of remorse.</p><p>"What reasons," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"That is none of your business," Eret replied firmly.</p><p>...</p><p>"That's why she didn't come with you," Hiccup muttered to himself. Eret grimaced as he realized that it was too late, Hiccup had already figured it all out or at least he was about to.</p><p>"Okay look," Eret sighed in defeat, "I'm not supposed to say anything...not yet, no one else knows either, so if I tell you, you need to promise you won't say anything to anybody." Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Astrid, she's, well she's," Eret paused as he took a deep breath, "she's pregnant Hic." Hiccup shook his head in bewildered confusion.</p><p>"So, y-you're saying that you and she," Hiccup stuttered, "you mean Astrid...a-and you are...gonna..."</p><p>"Have a kid," Eret replied in a concerned tone, "yeah." But Eret did not seem to be thrilled about it at all.</p><p>Hiccup turned his eyes back to the trail as he let what Eret had just said to him sink into his brain. He felt slightly dazed as the reality of it dawned on him. He didn't really know why he wouldn't have expected this. Astrid and Eret were married after all, it really was only a matter of time before they would eventually start a family. Having children was something she had always talked about, after all. Yet it still caused his heart to flinch. It was yet another reminder of his failure, another example of what Eret could give her that Hiccup had failed to. He took a deep breath and tried his best to see past it, to not get stuck once again dwelling on the past.</p><p>"Look I'm sorry," Eret replied, "s-she didn't want to tell you, I mean she didn't want you to know yet, she was afraid you'd overreact. So, we haven't told anybody yet. But it's not as if we've known long, I mean we only found out a little before the wedding." Hiccup took a deep breath as he silently processed all Eret had just told him. It took a few moments for him to come to terms with this newest development. He was suddenly concerned for Astrid, he wondered if the reason she didn't want to tell him was because there might be something wrong.</p><p>"But everything is okay," Hiccup questioned, "she's okay nothing else is wrong?"</p><p>"No Hic, she's fine," Eret replied, "I mean aside from a little morning sickness here and there, other than that, Astrid is ecstatic. I'm the one that's terrified. I think I'm more afraid than she is, and she's the one going through it!" Hiccup looked over at Eret curiously.</p><p>"What exactly are you afraid of," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"Well, I don't exactly know anything about being a father, now do I Hic," Eret replied, "It's not like I had any kind of role model at all. My dad took off when I was a boy and my mum...did the best she could for as long as she could but she died when I was eight years old. I pretty much raised myself. Seven years I spent on my own, getting into trouble and stealing just to survive. Then I fell in with Drago when I was fifteen. He took me under his wing and taught me how to track and trap dragons. In the beginning I even looked up to him. I considered him like a father, until that is, it became blatantly apparent that he was mad. Then I only stayed out of fear!"</p><p>Hiccup nodded as he listened to Eret vent about all the unfortunate things he had been through. Though he and his former friend had been through a lot, and had been at odds for a long time. Hiccup still felt for Eret. After everything that had happened between them, Hiccup still cared about him.</p><p>"You know Eret," Hiccup replied, "you may have had it pretty rough as a kid. I mean, maybe you haven't had the best role models and maybe you made a lot of bad decisions in the past, but none of that means that you'll be a terrible Dad. In fact, maybe you'll be even better at it because of all of that."</p><p>"Are ya kidding," Eret replied, "I grew up basically a petty thief with major abandonment issues a-and the closest thing I ever had to a father figure was Drago Bludvist! What the hell kind of a role model could I possibly be?"</p><p>"Well, think about it," Hiccup replied, "I mean, after everything you've been through, everything you've experienced, you'll have a lot of wisdom to pass on. Sure, you made a lot of bad decisions in the past but you're a good person, a-and when it came down to it, you chose to do the right thing. I mean you've completely turned your life around since then. If you ask me, I'd say your kid couldn't get a better role model than that." Eret just gazed at Hiccup in surprise. For a moment or two he remained speechless as all that Hiccup had said ran through his mind.</p><p>"Ya know Hic," Eret replied, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say we are practically friends again."</p><p>"Friends is a strong word," Hiccup said sarcastically, "I'd say more like...distant acquaintances." Eret smirked slightly at Hiccup's comment.</p><p>"Well as far as acquaintances go," Eret replied, "you're a pretty good one." Hiccup nodded as he glanced at Eret from the corner of his eye.</p><p>"You too," Hiccup replied. Eret chuckled under his breath as he shook his head.</p><p>"Astrid is going to be furious with me for telling you mate," Eret replied, "but I have to say, you took the news far better than we anticipated that you would."</p><p>"Well, you were probably right to be cautious," Hiccup replied, "I mean, if you had told me back in Berk, before all of this, it's possible I might have handled it a lot differently. But now...now..., well, let's just say being here has put a lot of things in perspective for me." Eret smiled slightly.</p><p>"Would you say this change in perspective has at all to do with this princess of yours," Eret asked. Hiccup grinned slightly as a blush crept over his cheeks. He turned away from Eret and attempted to focus on the trail ahead of them. As they continued on in silence Hiccup glanced in Eret's direction, silently debating whether or not he should confide in his old friend. He sighed slightly as he came to his decision.</p><p>"Honestly," Hiccup sighed again, "Merida has probably everything to do with it." Eret grinned knowingly as he gazed at Hiccup.</p><p>"Is that so," Eret replied. Hiccup glanced at Eret noticing the smirk on his former friend's face. He rolled his eyes and groaned.</p><p>"Don't look at me like that," Hiccup groaned.</p><p>"Like what mate," Eret replied feigning ignorance.</p><p>"Like that," Hiccup pointed at him, "with that stupid smug smirk on your face when you think you're right!" Eret chuckled.</p><p>"That's because I am right," Eret replied confidently, "you like this girl, I knew it the moment you first spoke of her." Hiccup just glared at him.</p><p>"Hey, deny it all ya like mate," Eret replied with a grin, "I know I'm right." Hiccup kept quiet as he focused on the trail ahead of him. Eret turned to look at him. Hiccup rolled his eyes and groaned when he noticed Eret gazing at him.</p><p>"Alright fine," Hiccup replied, "I like her, I mean, I... I more than like her, I mean I care about her...a lot." Hiccup could feel his heart race as he thought about his feelings for Merida.</p><p>"She...she just has this way about her," Hiccup went on, "I don't know what is, but she just draws me in. It's like she knows me better than anyone. Somehow, she just always knows what to say to me, and it's not like she's delicate about it either, I mean she doesn't hold back, ya know. She just tells me like it is all the time! She makes me see everything just a little more clearly. I swear Eret, this may sound a little crazy but it feels like I've known her forever, I mean, it feels like she just knows me inside and out. I can't really explain it." Eret nodded with a knowing grin as he listened.</p><p>"And she's t-the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. She's got these blue eyes that just see right through me a-and a smile that lights up her face, and this gorgeous wild red hair that's just all over the place, yet somehow it always looks perfect. I mean, I could just stare at her all day if I could get away with it. But all that is just scratching the surface," Hiccup went on, "I could just go on and on telling you everything that I like about her, but we'd probably be here for days." Hiccup sighed as he thought of Merida.</p><p>"Mostly, I like her because she just, she makes me feel...happy," Hiccup went on, "and I haven't felt like that in such a long time. It makes me just want to be around her all the time." Eret gazed at Hiccup in slight surprise. He hadn't exactly expected Hiccup to divulge anything about the princess, but he seemed to have poured out his heart in a single breath.</p><p>"Ya know Hic," Eret replied with a long-drawn-out sigh, "it sounds an awful lot like you might be falling for this girl."</p><p>"That's what I'm afraid of," Hiccup replied. Eret furrowed his brow at Hiccup's comment as he turned to look at him.</p><p>"Why would you be afraid of falling for her," Eret questioned curiously. Hiccup sighed.</p><p>"I don't exactly have a very good track record when it comes to relationships," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Relationship," Eret corrected, "one, singular. It's not like you go around breaking hearts left and right mate. I mean one failed relationship doesn't exactly give you a terrible track record."</p><p>"Yeah, well it was a pretty terrible ending to that one relationship don't ya think," Hiccup replied, besides that's not the only reason."</p><p>"Okay," Eret replied, "what else?"</p><p>"Because," Hiccup replied, "look it's all just a little more than complicated. I mean I... I want to tell her how I feel, I... I even tried to the other night, but there are just so many complications a-and obstacles."</p><p>"Like what," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Oh gee, I don't know Eret," Hiccup replied flatly, "uh, how about the fact that she's a princess and I'm just a Viking. Or, ya know, how about the fact that her mother despises all Vikings. Oh a-and maybe the fact that my people were banished from Dunbroch three hundred or so years ago. Or even better, the fact that in order to be with her I'd have to somehow convince her parents, the Lords and all of Dunbroch that I'm even worthy of her!"</p><p>"Alright, alright," I get it," Eret replied, "that's a lot of obstacles." Eret glanced over at Hiccup and smiled.</p><p>"But isn't she worth the effort mate," Eret questioned with a sly grin. Hiccup gazed ahead as Eret's words echoed through his brain. He could feel his heart rate increase as he thought about what Eret had said. Of course, she was worth the effort, she was worth everything.</p><p>"Absolutely," Hiccup replied as a small smile formed on his face. The rest of the journey Hiccup didn't speak all that much. He was far too lost in his own thoughts of Merida and what he would say to her the next time they met. Before long they were at the meeting place. The moment Hiccup dismounted Toothless, he headed straight for the hollowed-out tree. He found there another letter. He opened it immediately and began to read. Eret looked on in curiosity.</p><p>...</p><p>Dear Hiccup,</p><p>I spent a little time in the archive yesterday but I had no luck finding anything, though I didn't exactly look as thoroughly as I'd wanted to as something sort of happened while I was there. I had just started going through one of the books when I was interrupted by my mother. Surprisingly she was in the archives for the same purpose as I, to look for information about Berk and the dragon hunters. She said she has been looking a little each day ever since I told her of Mairead's journal, but that she hadn't found anything yet. I was surprised she'd be so helpful considering the subject.</p><p>But in the conversation that followed I told her that I believe that Berk was wrongfully banished, and that I was looking for proof of such. My mother was nae the least bit happy with my opinion and she completely overreacted.</p><p>My mother believes Berk's banishment was well meant. She thinks that Hiccup the first took advantage of Mairead and she thinks that Mairead was far too young and naive to have known any better. She believes that while Mairead may have truly thought she loved him, that it was far more likely that Hiccup the first only pursued her to steal her throne.</p><p>I just know that can't be true. I know it in my heart and soul! Your grandfather loved Mairead, he wanted nothin' more than her heart. If the Viking in my dream is truly yer great, great grandfather, then I know his love was true. I know it by the way he looked at me and the way he spoke to me as if I were Mairead. And I know it by the way my grandmother spoke of him in her journal!</p><p>I told my mother that I believe that Hiccup and Mairead were true soul mates, and that the Berkan Vikings were good people much like us but she simply refused to listen. She believes that Berk is no different than the Vikings that attacked her village, or the northern invaders that pillaged our land. She said I was foolish and naive to believe otherwise.</p><p>"I tried to defend yer people, but my mother wouldn't listen. In fact, I doubt she heard a word I said. She held firm to her belief about Vikings and would not see it any other way. I know ye say she has a right to feel this way but the very thought of it breaks my heart. Yer a good person, yer noble and kind. Ye deserve a chance just the same as any other but because of all my mum has suffered at the hands of those scoundrels I fear she will never give ye the time o' day.</p><p>Don't get me wrong, my mum is a good person and she is reasonable and accepting, but I fear her past experience with the Northern Invaders has made her intolerant of any and all Vikings! I mean, I knew that trying to convince my mum to see past the fact that yer a Viking would be difficult but I had hoped she'd at least hear me out, I had hoped she'd at least give ye a chance. Now I'm not so sure.</p><p>I don't know what to do. I fear that she may ne'er see past the fact that yer a Viking! But I'll not lose my only true friend because of it. There has to be a way to change her mind, there has to be some way to make her see.</p><p>I'm sorry this letter is not as cheerful as the last. There has just been so much weighing on my mind these past few days and what happened with my mum just made it all that much worse. It upsets me the most because this is the first real fight my mum and I have had since the bear incident but I worry there is no gettin' through to her this time. I know ye'd probably tell me not to worry but I can't help it. I keep thinking about what happened to our grandparents, how they were forced to part for maybe even the same reasons my mum has said. It wasn't fair then and it's not fair now.</p><p>It's possible that maybe I overreacted to what my mother said. I mean, it's not as if she's ne'er warned me o' Vikings before. Practically my whole life she's taught me to fear yer kind. But now that I know ye, I know she's wrong about Berk at least. I probably shouldn't have taken it so personally I guess, but I just could nae bite my tongue! When she spoke of yer people in such a way it felt personal to me. Now I just don't know what to do. Maybe I shouldn't lose heart. Maybe if I just keep trying, maybe I could convince my mum to give yer people a chance at least, then she could see for herself that Berk is different.</p><p>I don't mean to worry ye, there just has been many things on my mind and the fight with my mother to top it off. Mostly it's just been hard to be away from ye and Toothless these past few days. I miss ye both. I know I said this before, but ye both are my truest friends and the thought of losing either of ye breaks my heart. I won't allow that to happen. I will find a way to make her see, to make her listen.</p><p>The one good thing is that tomorrow is the last day of my grounding. One more day and then we can get back to provin' yer people's innocence and finding out the truth about our grandparents. Until then I'll be thinkin' o' ye and Toothless.</p><p>Stay safe.</p><p>Love Merida</p><p>—</p><p>Hiccup smiled slightly at her last words. Though most of her letter was worrisome, her last sentiments gave him hope. She was thinking of him and she missed him, perhaps he stood a chance after all. Of course, now knowing for certain her mother's stance on Vikings made it all that much more complicated. He already knew pursuing her would take much effort on his part. He had to prove himself not only to her parents, but the Lords and her people as well. But to him Merida was worth it all. He just had to tell her how he felt and he had to know for certain if she felt the same for him. Though her letter was somewhat disheartening, it left him more determined than ever to prove himself worthy. He looked down at her written words one last time, tracing her last words with his fingers 'love Merida'. He was beginning to think that maybe he already did. He folded the paper neatly as he glanced up at Eret.</p><p>"Everything okay Hic," Eret asked having noticed his concerned expression as he read the letter. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>"Uh...yeah" Hiccup replied, "Merida and her mother had some sort of argument and she's a little upset about it."</p><p>"An argument," Eret questioned, "about what exactly?"</p><p>"Uh well," Hiccup replied, "I guess it was sort of about me." Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"Well not me personally," Hiccup replied, "about Berk and Vikings in general, I guess. I told you her mom hates Vikings."</p><p>"So, what happened," Eret asked.</p><p>"Apparently the Queen thinks Berk was rightfully banished," Hiccup replied, "she thinks my grandfather didn't really love Mairead and he tried to use her to steal the throne. And she was more than a little upset that Merida believes otherwise."</p><p>"Is that all," Eret replied.</p><p>"Merida tried to defend Berk," Hiccup went on, "and they got into an argument over it."</p><p>"So, what does this mean for you Hic," Eret questioned. Hiccup shrugged his shoulders.</p><p>"Well, I guess it means I have my work cut out for me," Hiccup replied, "but I'm not worried." He paused a moment and sighed heavily. Eret gazed at him skeptically.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup groaned, "maybe I am a little worried, but that won't stop me from trying to prove myself to them. I mean, I gained Merida's trust even though she tried to kill me. I'm sure I could win over her parents."</p><p>"Wait," Eret shook his head in confusion, "d-did you just say that Merida tried to kill you?" Hiccup chuckled slightly as he nodded his head.</p><p>"Absolutely," Hiccup replied with a grin, "and it was more than a little impressive! I mean she took on a dragon and a Viking all on her own and she was absolutely fearless. I mean, sure, it was only me and Toothless but she didn't know we weren't dangerous.</p><p>"The more you talk about her, mate," Eret replied with a chuckle, "the more I like this girl."</p><p>"Yeah," Hiccup replied with a slight smile, "me too." Hiccup pulled out his notebook and opened it to slip the letter inside its cover. He looked up at Eret once more.</p><p>"Can you just give me a minute," Hiccup said, "I'm just gonna write Merida back."</p><p>"Right mate," Eret replied, "I'll just give you your privacy then." As Hiccup closed his notebook and turned to walk away, the previous letter from Merida fell out and fluttered to the ground. Eret noticed and bent down to pick it up.</p><p>"Hey Hic," Eret called out, "you dropped thi..." Eret paused as he stared at the folded paper. He took immediate notice of the broken wax seal. He folded the paper so the seal looked intact and was surprised to see the emblem of a sword pressed into the wax. It was an emblem he knew well. He looked up at Hiccup with a bewildered expression.</p><p>"Thanks, Eret," Hiccup replied as he reached for the paper. Eret handed it over wordlessly. Hiccup noticed the expression on Eret's face and became concerned.</p><p>"You okay Eret," Hiccup asked, "you look like you've seen a ghost?" Eret shook his head.</p><p>"Uh...uh...It's nothing mate," Eret replied as he quickly handed the letter to Hiccup. Hiccup gazed back at him skeptically.</p><p>"Go on then Hic," Eret said dismissively, "go write your bloody love letter."</p><p>"Ya know Eret," Hiccup replied flatly, "I'm beginning to regret confiding in you." Eret chuckled.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Another Clue, Another Obsticle</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 18</p><p>Castle Macintosh</p><p>A guard made his way into the study of Lord Macintosh. Lord Macintosh looked up from his reading and looked at the guard with a slight scowl on his face. The guard tried to stand just a little bit taller under the critical eye of his master.</p><p>"Your Lordship," the guard said in a deep voice, "his Lordship, Lord Dingwall has arrived to speak with you. The scowl slowly turned up into a nearly snarling smile.</p><p>"Aye, send the old coot in then," Macintosh replied with a wave of his hand, "it's about time I had some good news." The guard stepped aside and Lord Dingwall stepped into the room.</p><p>"Dingwall, ye old man," Macintosh said, "what news do ye bring from Dunbroch?"</p><p>"The King and Queen heard our proposal," Dingwall replied, "but I don't think King Fergus is too keen on it, he insists the princess can rule on her own. I can't see him forcing the issue of marriage upon her should she reject it again."</p><p>Macintosh sat back in his chair running his fingers over his beard as he thought over this new information. Of the three Lords, he was the one that had been angered the most by both Merida's initial rejection and continual rebuffing of his son over the past five years. Clan Macintosh were a proud people, not easily assuaged when their pride was bruised. He had waited patiently for a resolution, but the princess continued to drag her heels in the matter and the King and Queen did little to persuade her. In Macintosh's mind, the issue should have been settled by now, but the King and Queen instead bended to their daughter's stubborn will. They had decided against the Lords, and had given their daughter her freedom to choose as her heart desired. She was free to choose any man that could win her heart, regardless of blood or title. 

It was, in fact, a disparaging insult against the Lords. It was a larceny against their sons who had spent most of their young lives preparing for the throne. Because of this Lord Macintosh began to hatch a plan. It was a conniving and near treasonous plan to force the King's hand in the matter. He had somehow convinced the other Lords to join him in his plan. He had spent the last five years stoking the flames of their wounded pride, reminding them of their slighted sons, and persuading the clans to join forces with him against the King and the royal family. If a choice is what the spoiled princess wanted then a choice she would have. She would have her choice of the three suitors offered and if she refused, the choice would be to submit to an arranged marriage or lead her clan to dishonor. If she still resisted and Dunbroch saw fit to coronate her without a husband, against the Lord's will, then her reign would be short. For a Queen whom none would follow and whose enemies are great was doomed to fall.</p><p>The plan was simple enough, they were to persuade the King that the future of Dunbroch was to be settled. They were to demand that he force the princess to choose between the three suitors only and then if she still refused them and still would not submit to an arranged marriage, then the three clans would join forces to overthrow King Fergus, cast the princess aside and appoint one of their sons to the throne. But Macintosh had even taken it a step further and somehow had convinced the other Lords that his own son Ryan Macintosh should be appointed to the throne. He was convinced that of the three suitors, his son was the best choice for the throne and he also believed without a doubt that if given the chance, his son could easily win the princess' heart. So, the three Lords agreed that Wee Dingwall and McGuffin were to purposely fall short during their courting of the princess to set up Ryan as the best choice. Lord Macintosh was sure his son would win her over and it was only a matter of time before clan Macintosh would sit on the throne of Dunbroch.</p><p>"But they've gree tae our terms thus far," Macintosh questioned. Lord Dingwall nodded.</p><p>"Aye they have," Dingwall replied, "they gree tae th' suitors comin' tae woo th' princess, but as I said, tis doubtful that they will force her tae choose, if she aye remains pernicketie."</p><p>"All we need is our foot in th' door Dingwall," Macintosh replied, "so long as ye 'n' McGuffin keep yer sons in line, it will be easy for Ryan tae entice th' princess. She'll nae stand a chance against his charm."</p><p>"Ye truly believe Ryan can sway th' princess," Dingwall questioned, "she be a right ornery lass, are ye sure he knows what he's getting' in tae?" Macintosh laughed out loud.</p><p>"If there be one thing my son is good at," Macintosh replied, "it be beguiling young lassie's; believe me, the princess will fall at his feet when he's through!"</p><p>"Let's hope that yer right," Dingwall replied, "and the transition goes smoothly and without unnecessary force."</p><p>"Either way," Macintosh replied, "my son will sit on the throne of Dunbroch."</p><p>_________________________________________<br/>
Berk</p><p>Astrid stood at a table in the great hall going over some matters of business with some of the elders when Ruffnut suddenly burst through the door. Astrid looked up at her friend in curiosity. Ruffnut approached with a smile on her face and a scroll in her hand.</p><p>"The carrier dragon just brought this," Ruffnut smiled, "it might be word from the guys!" She held the scroll out to Astrid. Astrid turned to the elders.</p><p>"Please excuse me a moment," Astrid said, "I must take this message." Astrid turned back to Ruffnut and took the scroll from her hand. She quickly unrolled the paper and began to read.</p><p>...</p><p>Dear Astrid,</p><p>Fish and I have arrived in Dunbroch without a hitch and we managed to find Hiccup in a matter of hours. He's fine and so far not in any kind of trouble at all. Just as Valka said, he is trying to find out about his great, great grandfather's time here. Hiccup was not thrilled that I came in your stead, but believe it or not the two of us have reached an understanding. It seems Hiccup has turned a new leaf since he's been here. Apparently, he's become acquainted with a girl here, the princess no less. I don't know for certain, but I think the change in his attitude may have something to do with this princess of his. He fancies her, I think, though he refuses to admit it.</p><p>Anyway, the two of them have discovered that Hiccup's great, great grandfather was in fact in love with the princess' great, great, grandmother, the former queen of this land. It turns out the two had some torrid affair and it may have resulted in the banishment of Berk from Dunbroch; a banishment that stands till this day. Hiccup is determined to find evidence of Berk's innocence and try to convince the King and Queen to lift said banishment. Fish and I have agreed to help him find the truth.</p><p>I don't know how it will take, but if I have the opportunity to help Hiccup and prove that I'm not his enemy, then I want to help in any way I can. Not to mention that if Hiccup does, in fact, find himself falling for this girl then it could make things a lot easier on you and I. Regardless, I wait for your word on the matter. If you want us to return, we will do so, but I'm telling you without a doubt that Hiccup will most certainly refuse. There is not a doubt in my mind that Hiccup won't leave until he finds what he's looking for.</p><p>I will try to keep you updated as the situation progresses.</p><p>All my love,</p><p>Eret</p><p>—-—</p><p>Astrid looked up from the letter and briefly glanced over at Ruffnut, who was anxiously awaiting her word. She sighed heavily as she dropped her eyes back to the floor and silently thought over all that Eret had told her. So, it seemed that Valka might have been right all along, perhaps Hiccup would find the love he'd been searching for all this time in Dunbroch. But Astrid could feel the uncertainty about it building up in her heart. Though the prospect of Hiccup finding a new love and finally moving on would certainly make things easier on her and Eret, she remained skeptical that this particular girl, this princess of Dunbroch could be the one for him. She was, after all, the princess of a land that saw Berk as their enemy. She couldn't help but think that this all would undoubtedly lead Berk into a world of trouble if it all went wrong. The last thing she wanted was for Berk to be thrust into any sort of war over it. She became aware suddenly of Ruffnut's anxious gaze. She looked up at her friend once again.</p><p>"They're safe," Astrid replied in reassurance, "and they found Hiccup."</p><p>"Great," Ruff sighed in relief, "when will they be back?"</p><p>"That I don't know," Astrid replied as she absentmindedly fiddled with the pendant that hung around her neck, "it seems they've agreed to help Hiccup find out more about his grandfather's time there." Ruffnut's smile faltered a bit with Astrid's words. Astrid smiled reassuringly though she still remained somewhat skeptical of the whole thing.</p><p>"They'll be fine Ruff," she replied, "they all know what they're doing." Ruff nodded.</p><p>"I know," she replied.</p><p>"I have to go show this to Valka," Astrid replied. She turned her attention back to the elders.</p><p>"I'm sorry," she replied, "we'll have to finish this later, I've just received an update on Chief Hiccup and I need to inform his mother." The elders nodded in understanding as Astrid turned and headed out the door.</p><p>She found Valka in the dragon nursery tending to the newest hatchlings. She stepped into the room and cleared her throat to get Valka’s attention. Valka looked up and over at Astrid briefly. </p><p>"The hatchlings are getting big," Astrid said. Valka smiled slightly for a moment and then turned her attention back to the young dragons.</p><p>"They grow quickly," Valka replied, "soon they will have to learn to hunt on their own." Valka looked over at Astrid once more. She took notice of the far off look in her eye and the gentle smile on her face as she watched the babies play. A hatchling approached Astrid and pawed at her leg. Astrid giggled slightly as she picked up the tiny dragon and coddled it. Valka gazed at Astrid knowingly, as only another mother would, though she chose to keep her inklings to herself.</p><p>"What brings you here Astrid," Valka asked. Astrid quickly shook off her brief softhearted moment. She released the young dragon and watched as it scampered off with its siblings once again. She turned her attention back to Valka.</p><p>"Eret and Fish sent word from Dunbroch," Astrid replied as she handed Valka the scroll, "they've found Hiccup. So far he's managed to keep himself out of trouble." </p><p>“That's great, Valka replied as she took the scroll from Astrid’s hand. She carefully unrolled the paper and began to read it. When she had finished, she looked up at Astrid once more with a slight smile on her face. Valka had a feeling that Hiccup would find all that he had always been searching for in Dunbroch. It seemed her hope was well placed. Perhaps this princess that Eret spoke of was the true reason that Hiccup felt drawn to the island of Dunbroch to begin with.</p><p>"So," Astrid sighed, "what do you think?"</p><p>"About what exactly," Valka asked in slight confusion.</p><p>"What should we do," Astrid questioned, "Eret agreed to help Hiccup, but Berk is an old enemy of Dunbroch. What if they get caught while they’re there? What if something goes wrong? What if this girl Hiccup met turns them all in?"</p><p>"Calm down Astrid," Valka replied, "Eret said they were all fine. And from what he said about this girl, I really don't think there is anything to be worried about."</p><p>"But she's the princess," Astrid replied firmly, "Berk is technically still an enemy of her people. I'm not sure that trusting her is a good idea."</p><p>"Astrid, you know that Hiccup has a knack for negotiating peacefully with other clans," Valka replied, ”and it sounds to me like Hiccup might have already won over the princess. I’m sure their friendship could only aid him in negotiations with Dunbroch's leaders. I'm sure he will be able to form a new alliance with them."</p><p>"You have a point," Astrid replied, "but you know how Hiccup is. He gives everyone the benefit of the doubt, regardless of their opinions of us. He thinks he can talk anyone into seeing his point of view, he thinks he can show them a better way. It's exactly that train of thought that got him into trouble with Drago Bludvist. Stoick tried to tell Hiccup that Drago was an enemy, that he was dangerous and that there was no negotiating with a man like that. But Hiccup insisted that he could get Drago to see things his way. He was convinced he could sway Drago to our side. But he was wrong and we all lost Stoic because of it. Stoic's death was hard on the whole tribe but Hiccup barely came back from it. What if he is wrong about these people too? Eret said that Berk was banished from Dunbroch and that means they, like Drago, are also our enemies. I mean, we don't even know anything about these people. What if they are not the negotiable type? What if Hiccup gets in over his head again?" Astrid paused and turned to Valka with worry in her eyes, "if something bad happens this time, Hiccup might not ever come back from it. Not to mention that Eret and Fish would be in danger too if anything went wrong!"</p><p>Valka nodded as she listened to Astrid. She understood the girl's fears and concerns. Losing Stoic was the worst thing that their tribe had been through but it was the hardest on Hiccup. Hiccup blamed himself for Stoic's death and it took him a very long time to recover from that. But Valka knew her son. She knew that he was persistent and motivated when it came to negotiating. Of course, the possibility existed that he could come across a clan that wanted nothing to do with alliances, but more often than not Hiccup had won over many a difficult clan since he had become chief. He may have been wrong about Drago Bludvist, but he'd still managed to win over many of Drago's former followers, including Astrid's husband.</p><p>"You must have faith Astrid," Valka replied, "you know better than anyone that when Hiccup is motivated enough, and he puts his mind to something that he will stop at nothing to accomplish it."</p><p>"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Astrid replied, "suppose he puts his heart and soul into this and it all falls apart, or worse this princess double crosses him, then what?" Valka took a deep breath as she muddled over all that Astrid had said. It was true that things did not always go as Hiccup anticipated at times. Recently it seemed that more often than not things had definitely not gone as planned for him, but for some reason which she could not explain, Valka knew in her heart that this time was different. This time, she knew that Hiccup was right where he needed to be. Valka turned back to Astrid with an expression of reassurance on her face.</p><p>"I know there is always a risk," Valka replied, "but if Hiccup wasn't as he is, then chances are he never would have convinced Eret to join the Hooligans and to make Berk his home, and you might not have the life with him that you now hold so dear. Hiccup needs to take this chance, even if there are a hundred obstacles to overcome, even if it doesn't go as planned. It's the only way that he will ever move on."</p><p>Astrid nodded as she gazed up at Valka. Everything that Valka had said was true; if it wasn't for Hiccup she would never have even given Eret a chance at all. Despite the fact that he was their enemy and despite her initial objections, Hiccup had easily accepted Eret, and allowed him to become a part of their clan. Because of this, Eret was able to prove himself to her and the other riders. If it wasn't for Hiccup, she might not have ever seen Eret as anything more than one of Drago's henchman. Now he was her husband and the father of her unborn child. The truth was she owed Hiccup for the life she now had and the family she was about to. She sighed slightly as she turned her eyes back to Valka.</p><p>"Okay," Astrid replied, "I'd like to help the guys as much as I can. Is there anything else you know about this Dunbroch place, anything at all that you think could help?"</p><p>"I don't know any more than you I'm afraid," Valka replied, "but all that Hiccup discovered was in his great, great grandfather's effects. Most was in a journal which I'm sure Hiccup took with him, but If you'd like we could sift through what's left and see if he missed anything of importance."</p><p>"That would be great," Astrid smiled.</p><p>"Well then," Valka sighed, "let's get to it then, shall we." With that, Astrid and Valka left the nursery and headed in the direction of Hiccup's house.<br/>
________________________________________</p><p>Dunbroch castle</p><p>Merida walked along the shelves of books in the library, hoping that something would catch her eye. She had spent the whole day searching and she'd found many of the childhood stories that her mother had told her over the years; none of which mentioned any village or person or clan with the name of Adag. Though her search seemed to be coming up empty, she couldn't quite shake the feeling that she'd heard this name before. If only she could put her finger on where or how. She sighed heavily in defeat as she flopped down into one of the cushiony arm chairs. If there was one thing she was simply not cut out for, it was spending hours reading and researching. </p><p>She decided to call it a day and head out to trot Angus along the green. The poor horse was nearly going stir crazy since she'd been grounded and forbidden to ride. She tried to at least trot him every day just to keep him levelheaded. She stood from her place and headed over to the door. Just as she reached for the knob, the door burst open causing her to jump back. Her three brothers nearly tumbled into the room giggling. Harris quickly closed the door behind him and bid his brothers to be quiet. He turned his ear back to the door and listened for Maudie's flustered footsteps. Merida crossed her arms over her chest and smirked at her trouble making brothers.</p><p>"What did ye do now," she questioned. The three boys jumped in fright of her unexpected voice. They turned in an instant, with eyes as wide as saucers and each as pale as a ghost. Merida chuckled in spite of herself. They sighed in relief at the sight of their sister.</p><p>"Oh, it’s only ye," Harris sighed in relief, "we thought we'd been caught for sure!"</p><p>"Ye have," Merida smirked, "what have ye done to get poor Maudie in a tizzy this time?"</p><p>"Nothing," Harris denied. Merida raised an eyebrow at him. She eyed each of them carefully with a disbelieving expression on her face. Merida knew her brothers like the back of her hand. Harris was the ringleader so to speak. He was the instigator and orchestrator of nearly all their troublemaking schemes. Hubert was like his second in command, but Hamish, seemed to be the only one of the three to show any kind of remorse for their many pranks. And so, it was Hamish she focused her attention on now. She gazed at Hamish for a long moment causing him to fidget nervously. Harris and Hubert stared daggers at him, and the poor boy buckled under the pressure of his siblings.</p><p>"It was just a joke," Hamish relented. The other two boys sighed in aggravation. Merida crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. </p><p>"Out with it," Merida said firmly.</p><p>"We put a dead rat in Maudie's sewing basket," Hamish replied regretfully.</p><p>"Boys," Merida exclaimed.</p><p>"It was his idea," Hamish cried out as he pointed to Harris.</p><p>"Hamish ye no good snitch," Harris growled as he pushed Hamish backward, “can’t ye ever keep yer geggy shut!”</p><p>"Enough," Merida snapped. The three boys gazed up at her with innocent eyes.</p><p>"Oh, please Merida," Harris pleaded, "don't tell mum." Merida put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Alright," Merida sighed as she pushed past them and headed to the door, "yer secret is safe with me, but ye know it's only a matter of time before Maudie tells mum herself."<br/>
She looked back at the three boys and smirked at them. </p><p>“Try to stay out of trouble boys for the rest o’ the day at least,” she sighed. Harris crossed his arms over his chest as he gazed at Merida curiously. </p><p>"Say, what are ye doing in the library anyway," Harris asked as he eyed her suspiciously. Merida turned to her brother and sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest once more.</p><p>"I, uh, I was looking for something," Merida replied cryptically, "but I haven't had any luck so far."</p><p>"Well," Hamish gazed up at her as he stepped forward, "what exactly is it that yer looking for?"</p><p>"Aye," Hubert chimed in, "maybe we can help." Merida gazed at her brothers for a long moment, debating on her actions. She smiled warmly at the three boys. Despite being the trouble makers they were, her siblings always had her back, as she always had theirs.</p><p>"Well, I...I guess it couldn't hurt," Merida replied nonchalantly. She stepped away from the door and took a few steps toward the boys.</p><p>"I sort of remembered something," Merida paused as she tried to find the right words to explain without going into too much detail, "it's a name I think, I'm sure it's from a story mum told me once, but I can't for the life o' me remember which one."</p><p>"A name," Harris questioned, "a name of what?"</p><p>"Well, I'm not sure exactly," Merida replied, "I mean, I think it might be the name of a place, maybe a village." The boys looked at her curiously.</p><p>"The name is Adag," Merida said, "and, try as I might, I simply can't recall why it sounds so familiar or where I remember it from." The three boys continued to gaze at her in slight confusion.</p><p>"Adag," Hubert questioned.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "does it sound familiar to any of ye at all?"</p><p>"Aye," Hubert replied matter-of-factly, "I don't know about it being a part of any story, but it's a Gaelic word. We just learned it a few days ago in our Gaelic lessons. Adag is "fish" in Gaelic."</p><p>"Fish," Merida questioned in confusion.</p><p>"No, no, no," Harris said haughtily, "Adag does not mean fish."</p><p>"Aye it does," Hubert replied in slight aggravation.</p><p>"No, it doesn't," Harris argued, "iasg means "fish". Don't' ye pay attention at all in Gaelic lessons?"</p><p>"Oh yeah," Hubert replied, "Mum taught us the names of different fish too, I think I got confused." Merida rolled her eyes and groaned in aggravation.</p><p>"Aye," she groaned, "do any o' ye know what adag means or not?"</p><p>"Iasg means "fish"," Hamish confirmed, "adag is just a type of fish."</p><p>"W-what type fish," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Salmon I think," Hubert chimed in.</p><p>"Bradan is salmon," Hamish corrected as he rolled his eyes at Hubert, "adag means haddock."</p><p>"Oh yeah," Hubert replied. Merida's eye went wide and she could feel her heart freeze mid beat at the words that left her brother's mouth.</p><p>"Haddock," Merida repeated in surprise. She gazed at the three boys nearly dumbfounded.</p><p>"Yer telling me that adag, means haddock in Gaelic," Merida questioned. All three boys nodded at once.</p><p>"Aye," Harris snickered, "don't ye remember anything mum taught ye in Gaelic?" Harris' comment was meant to annoy his sister but she didn't even take notice of the remark. She shook her head in disbelief as the information her brothers had given her sunk into her brain. If what her brothers said was true, if adag was the Gaelic word for haddock then what exactly was the meaning of Mairead's message? Merida was certain that it had to be about Hiccup, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock. She tried to remember Hiccup's words from his letter but used Haddock in place of Adag.</p><p>…</p><p>The house of Haddock is lost.</p><p>Exiled and forgotten, it is said a Haddock will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond.</p><p>…</p><p>She furrowed her brow as she thought about it. "The house of Haddock," must refer to the Haddock family; Hiccup's family. "Exiled and forgotten," there was no question in Merida's mind that this referred to the banishment of Berk, and Hiccup's people from Dunbroch. The last part was a little trickier to decipher and she wasn't quite sure how to interpret it. "A Haddock will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond." Could it be that their great, great grandparents were leading them to restore the bond of both their clans? Was she and Hiccup being called to bring their people together in an alliance once again? Perhaps her initial idea was right all along, perhaps they were being led to find the truth about what went so wrong between their clans and to somehow set it right once more. Merida turned her eyes back to her brothers and beamed at them.</p><p>"Ye wee devils," she exclaimed in excitement, "the three of ye have helped me more than ye know! I could just kiss the lot o' ye!" With that, she threw her arms around the three boys before they even had time to resist. They groaned in annoyance as she kissed the tops of their heads.</p><p>"Thanks boys," she smiled as she let them go. They squirmed as they stuck their tongues out and frantically rubbed the places in which she had kissed them. Merida chuckled at their reaction.</p><p>"So, do we have yer word then," Harris questioned, "ye won't tell mum about the prank then?"</p><p>"Aye," Merida smirked, "she'll nae hear a word about it from me."</p><p>"Ye swear it," Hubert questioned.</p><p>"Cross my heart," Merida laughed as she drew the shape of a cross over her heart.</p><p>"Alright then," Hubert smiled.</p><p>Merida quickly ran out the door and headed to her room. This was the biggest break they'd had in the mystery so far and she simply could not wait to tell Hiccup what she had inadvertently discovered. The only problem was that she was still grounded for another whole day. She groaned at the thought. She sighed heavily, there was simply no way she would be able to talk her mother into letting her off early, not after their terrible argument the day before. She entered her room and closed the door behind her. She then flopped back upon her bed and let out another long and frustrated sigh. Tomorrow was sure to be the longest day yet.<br/>
_________________________________________</p><p>Later that evening</p><p>Hiccup sat quietly on a log beside the fire sharpening his dagger with a piece of slate. He sighed as his mind once again drifted to the strange dream and the strange message that Mairead had given to him. He thought about Eret's hypothesis that the message in the dream somehow referred to Dunbroch's banishment of Berk. It was certainly plausible that he and Merida were somehow meant to renew the bond between their clans. It was possible that the message from Mairead was meant to lead them on the path to bringing their people together in an alliance once again. But even though Eret's suggestion did sort of make sense, there were still parts of it that didn't quite add up. Hiccup thought back to the last part of what Mairead had said once more.</p><p>...</p><p>"It's so much bigger than us, we were only the start of it.</p><p>The house of Adag will rise and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable. For the link that binds them was forged in love.</p><p>….</p><p>Hiccup silently repeated the word in his head. "The house of Adag," he muttered to himself. He was still not entirely convinced that Adag was in reference to Berk. Of course, there was still the startling coincidence that Adag did sound very similar to his surname. That in itself could very well mean that Adag did in fact refer to Berk. After all, in Berk as far back as their history began, or at least since it was recorded, a Haddock had always been chief. In fact, it was said that his nomadic ancestors had actually founded Berk nearly a thousand years ago. As many questions as this idea raised, Hiccup still wasn't completely convinced that this was what Adag referred to. Judging by what he saw in his dream, it seemed far more likely that Adag was the name of some ancient village of Dunbroch that perhaps had been lost to time. But if that were the case, what exactly would that have to do with he and Merida or their grandparents?</p><p>"The bond between the clans will be unbreakable, for the link that binds them was forged in love." This part was somewhat confusing. If the clans that Mairead spoke of truly were Dunbroch and Berk then it sounded as if a new alliance between them was of great importance and that their bond would benefit both clans. </p><p>This led him to the last portion of the message, "the link between them was forged in love.' Did that mean the love and respect between their people? Was it the love between their grandparents that it referred to? Technically Mairead and Hiccup the first had inadvertently formed a bond between their clans when they fell in love. But that bond was not accepted and only drove their people farther apart. Was he and Merida supposed to somehow remind their people of this bond? Or could it be more personal than that?</p><p>He wondered how it was possible to form an alliance between two enemy clans with love. It seemed to him that alliances were formed with things more substantial than love. Alliances were formed with things like the trade of weapons and goods, and maybe even services in times of need. Of course, for an alliance to work you also needed to establish great trust and friendship between the clans. You certainly could not form an alliance if there was any form of hatred or distrust between them. Perhaps this is what Mairead meant.</p><p>She had also said, "heavy is the heart torn by pride and only can be mended by forgiveness' healing hand." Perhaps pride had broken the bond between Berk and Dunbroch and the only way to fix that was to show their people that although the two had been enemies for a long time, it didn't have to stay that way. If they could only put their pride aside, he was sure that the people of Dunbroch would see that Berk was not their enemy. Maybe they would see that the people of Berk were not much different than they were. He truly believed that if given the opportunity, that his and Merida's people would get along very well, just as he and Merida did. Perhaps he and Merida were somehow meant to lead both their peoples by example. If their leaders could form a friendship despite their people's unfortunate past, then surely, they would see that an alliance between their clans was feasible. And what's more, if his and Merida's friendship continued to progress as he hoped that it would, perhaps it would give their people even more incentive to end this nearly three hundred year old feud. The words from Mairead ran through his mind once more.</p><p>"The bond between the clans will be unbreakable, for the link between them was forged in love." As he contemplated the words more thoroughly, he could feel his heart beat increase. The thought arose suddenly, that perhaps the words held an even deeper meaning for he and Merida. He was already keenly aware that his feelings for her had been growing since the moment they met. He already had begun to realize that his feelings for her ran much deeper than just a mere crush. He wanted nothing more than to be with Merida. And although Hiccup had yet to say the words aloud, there was no doubt in his mind that he was falling in love with her. Hiccup could not help but to wonder if maybe this could be what Mairead meant.</p><p>His mind flashed back suddenly to the moment he and Merida had shared on her balcony; that moment he had finally mustered up the courage to try to tell her how he felt. The moment was brief and unfortunately it was interrupted before he could confess his true feelings, but he recalled the feelings that seemed to flood his heart as he gazed back at her before he left. He was certain as he gazed into her pale blue eyes that he had finally found where he truly belonged. He was certain that he could see his future somehow reflected back at him from those same beautiful eyes that she shared with Mairead. Since that moment he was sure that he was falling for Merida. </p><p>He gulped suddenly as these thoughts ran through his mind. If it were true, if Mairead's strange prophecy pertained to he and Merida specifically, if he and Merida were truly meant to find each other, then perhaps it was the love between he and Merida that would make the bond between their clans unbreakable.</p><p>Hiccup's heart began to race at the mere thought of it. He could feel the sudden longing once again to just be in her presence and he wanted nothing more than to go to her balcony once more just to see her beautiful face. But she had made it clear that it was far too risky for him to do so. Especially after what happened with her mother, he thought it best to not take that chance, at least not yet. He sighed heavily as he replaced his dagger in its holster and tucked the flint stone back in his bag. There was only one more day to wait before he could see her again, surely, he could wait a measly twenty-four hours.</p><p>He pulled the furry blanket from his bag, stood from his place and headed over to Toothless, who was sleeping peacefully nearby. He sat down beside the dragon and leaned his back up against his side. He opened the neatly folded blanket and draped it over himself as he settled down for the night. He took a long deep breath as he pulled the blanket up to his chin. He swore that the lovely lavender scent of whatever cleansing oils Merida used in her long red hair still clung to the fabric. He smiled slightly as he recalled laying with her wrapped in his arms as she slept peacefully beside him that night in the cave. He had never felt so content as he did in that moment. He knew then that there was nowhere else he'd rather be and no one else that he wanted to be with. He could only pray that she felt the same.</p>
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<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Past May Be Hidden But It's Never Far</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 19</p><p>...</p><p>Eight-year-old Eret walked slowly forward as he gazed at his ill mother in trepidation. She lay silent and still in her bed looking out the window with a distant look in her eye. When she noticed that he had entered the room she turned to face him. Despite her sickly pallor, his mother smiled brightly in his direction.</p><p>"Come now," she called as she held her hand out to him, "don't be afraid." Eret stepped slowly forward and when he reached her, he nearly fell into her waiting arms. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes and a deep aching in his heart.</p><p>"Ye are my brave boy," she said softly as she wrapped her arms around him and kissed the top of his head, "ye must continue to be so." Eret nodded as he leaned into her and wiped away the few tears that escaped his eyes. She sighed as she pulled him into the bed beside her, "I have something for ye."</p><p>She reached to a box on her nightstand as she spoke. She opened it and pulled a chain and pendant from it. She pulled his hand forward and placed the pendant gently in his palm. He gazed at the all too familiar pendant questioningly and then turned his eyes back to his mother. She smiled warmly.</p><p>"It's yer's now," she said softly, "as it was always meant to be." Eret looked down at the pendant as he gently traced the engraving of the sword upon it. He gently turned the pendant in his fingers to see the dragon on the other side.</p><p>"As ye know, this belonged to yer father, "He gave it to me for safe keepin' before he was lost. He said I was to give it to ye when ye were grown." Eret just continued to gaze at her questioningly.</p><p>"I know I haven't told ye much about him before," she sighed remorsefully, "I always told myself I'd wait till ye were older to tell ye the whole truth. Perhaps I was wrong to wait and I'm sorry for that. But it's time ye knew about him." Her eyes dropped to the pendant in Eret's hand. "That has been passed down from father to son since yer great grandfather, the sword symbol on it is yer family crest." Eret looked up at her in intrigue.</p><p>"What is the dragon emblem," Eret asked. His mother smiled, "Yer father was told by his father that the dragon was the symbol of his clan, the dragon represents strength, honor, and courage. Eret nodded as he gazed at the face of the dragon in interest.</p><p>"Ye don't know this," she went on, "but ye come from a long line, and ye have prestigious roots. Yer father always meant to find his lost family; he searched all his life for the home he never knew. She turned her eyes back to the window with a sad look in her eyes.</p><p>"Perhaps if he had lived," she sighed, "he might one day have taken us with him to find that home."</p><p>…</p><p>Eret sat up suddenly from his slumber causing both Fish and Hiccup to look over at him in concern. He could feel his heart pounding and it took him a moment to clear his head. It had been years since he had thought about the time before his mother's death. The dream depicted one of the last good memories he ever had of his mother. The memory was crystal clear, and he felt almost as if he were back in that moment instantly. It caused his heart to feel heavy and he tried his best to keep it from showing. He looked around in bewilderment for a moment, then shook his head as he realized where he was. He turned to see Hiccup gazing at him curiously.</p><p>"Bad dream," Hiccup questioned. Eret sighed heavily as he leaned forward and attempted to rub the sleep from his eyes.</p><p>"You could say that," he replied dismissively as he stood from his place. He walked over to the creek, then crouched down beside it and splashed the cold water on his face. Hiccup followed after him.</p><p>"What was it about exactly," Hiccup asked curiously.</p><p>"Nothing," Eret replied in slight frustration, "don't worry about it!" Hiccup gazed at Eret in concern. Eret had seemed off ever since they had returned from the meeting place the day before and try as he might, Hiccup could not quite put his finger on the cause of Eret's sudden change in demeanor. For the rest of that day and night Eret had kept to himself mostly, and had barely spoken a word to either him or Fish. It was clear to Hiccup that something was weighing on him, but Eret would not say what it was. Hiccup assumed that it may have something to do with his fears about his impending fatherhood. Perhaps confiding in Hiccup had brought all his worries to the front of his mind which had inadvertently resulted in a nightmare. Hiccup sighed as he crossed his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Ya know Eret," he said, "if there is one thing I've learned since all of this started, it's that you shouldn't take dreams lightly." Eret remained crouched down by the water as he quietly thought over Hiccup's words. He glanced over his shoulder briefly but remained silent.</p><p>"Look," Hiccup sighed, "you don't have to tell me, but it might help talking about it. I know we've been through a lot and all, but you can still talk to me...as a friend." Eret shook his head. He could feel the frustration building up in his heart as Hiccup spoke.</p><p>"But we're not friends, are we Hic," Eret snapped as he turned and glared at Hiccup from over his shoulder, "or did you forget?" With that Eret stood quickly from his place and pushed past Hiccup. Hiccup gazed at him in both confusion and frustration. He quickly stormed after Eret.</p><p>"Hey what gives Eret," Hiccup yelled, "ya know, I thought that we actually made a little progress yesterday, I mean we talked like we used to before everything that happened. And then what, just like that we're back to being at odds? What happened? What is going on with you?" Eret paused and turned back to Hiccup.</p><p>"I told you, it's nothing," Eret replied, "please...just leave it alone, okay."</p><p>"It's not nothing Eret," Hiccup replied firmly, "you only ever get all defensive like this when something is bothering you, which clearly something is. So, what is it, what's going on?" Eret sighed heavily as he dropped his eyes to the ground. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head as he debated what to say.</p><p>"Eret," Hiccup said, "talk to me." Eret sighed heavily once again.</p><p>"It…it's my mother," Eret replied softly.</p><p>"Your mother," Hiccup repeated in slight confusion.</p><p>"The dream," Eret replied, "it was about my mother." Hiccup gazed at Eret in intrigue.</p><p>"What exactly about your mother," Hiccup asked. Eret shook his head and sighed heavily once again as he debated telling Hiccup anything more.</p><p>"It was the last memory I have of her," Eret replied, "and if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not talk about it mate, so just drop it, okay." With that Eret walked off without looking back. Hiccup shook his head as he watched him go.</p><p>"Sheesh," Fishlegs said as he came up beside Hiccup, "what's got him all wound up?" Hiccup crossed his arms over his chest as he continued to watch Eret walk away.</p><p>"I don't know," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"W-well, do you think we should go after him," Fish questioned.</p><p>"No," Hiccup replied as he kept his eyes on Eret, "let him go, clearly he needs to figure out whatever's bothering him on his own." Hiccup turned and then headed over to Toothless. He sighed heavily as he mounted the dragon.</p><p>"W-where are you going," Fish asked.</p><p>"I'm heading to the meeting place," Hiccup replied," I won't be long. Hopefully by the time I get back, Eret might be over whatever's bothering him."</p><p>"I don't know Hic," Fish replied, "like you, Eret also has a tendency to brood." Hiccup rolled his eyes at Fishlegs' comment.</p><p>"I'll be back," Hiccup replied as he and Toothless turned and headed in the opposite direction.<br/>_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</p><p>Dunbroch castle</p><p>Merida could not wait to read the letter from Hiccup this morning. Upon her arrival home, she lingered in the stable with Angus instead of rushing back to the castle. As soon as she had dismounted the horse, she made sure his food and water were filled. She then settled herself comfortably upon a bale of hay. She pulled Hiccup's letter and another purple wildflower from the pocket of her cloak. She smiled at the sight of the flower and then gently tucked the flower in her hair over her ear. She turned her attention back to the letter, carefully she unfolded the paper and silently began to read.</p><p>...</p><p>Dear Merida,</p><p>I'm sorry to hear about what happened with your mom. I can't tell you how terrible I feel that you argued with your mother over Berk. I can't help but to feel like it's my fault. I mean, I certainly don't want to be the cause of any kind of a rift between the two of you. I'm sure that everything she said was only out of concern for you and your safety and I really can't blame her for that. She's your mother after all. She loves you and despite your difference of opinion, you and your mother are still family, just try not to forget that.</p><p>Of course, I'd be lying if I told you that your last letter didn't concern me. I mean, I figured my being a Viking would be an issue for us eventually. It was just a matter of time. However, that doesn't mean I'm going to give up. I meant what I said before; you are worth fighting for. Our friendship is worth fighting for and I will do everything in my power to protect it.</p><p>I know that it will be hard but just try to be patient and try not to worry, and above all else please don't lose heart. I know that right now it might feel like this obstacle is insurmountable, but we will find a way around it, or over it, or maybe even straight through it if need be! This is only the first of probably many challenges our friendship is going to face and I'm sure it won't be the last. Please don't worry, we will get through this together. Just trust me okay. Besides, this isn't exactly the first time I've been misjudged because I'm a Viking; I'm sure I told you that the first day we met. As I said before, there are many Vikings that live up to the terrible reputation. It's unfortunate but it's true and because of that, people like mine are too often unfairly misjudged. Although your mom's opinion of Vikings is unfortunate, it isn't far off and I honestly can't hold how she feels about Vikings against her. It may take some time and a lot of effort to change their minds about Berk, but I will prove myself one way or another. And I will earn your parents' trust. I mean, I'll have you know that I have successfully negotiated with far less tolerant leaders in the past. I'm sure I will be able to appeal to you parents.</p><p>I know it will be a difficult task, but we will find what we have been looking for and we will convince your parents to give Berk another chance. And don't worry, even if it turns out that we can't find any proof of my ancestors' innocence at all; I promise you, I will prove mine. I don't know what Berk was like three hundred years ago but I know Berk now. We are good, honest, and hardworking people. Your parents will see that Berk is innocent and they will see the kind of people we are now.</p><p>You know, before I even knew anything about Dunbroch, I had a feeling that this was a special place and I had already planned to propose an alliance with your people from the moment I stumbled upon your land. I still do intend to do that and now that I have you as a friend, I have even more incentive to do so. I want our people to see that despite everything we have been through in the past, we don't have to be enemies now. I mean you and I alone are proof of that. If anything, our friendship should serve as an example to both our people that an alliance is possible.</p><p>What I need you to do is just take a deep breath, and try not to overwhelm yourself with worry. You have one more day of being grounded and tomorrow when we are together again, we can put our heads together and figure this all out. Just please try not to worry, it's all going to be okay, we've got this. I am ready and willing to take a leap of faith, all I ask is that you be willing to do the same.</p><p>Love, your friend, Hiccup</p><p>...</p><p>Merida sighed as she folded the letter once again and stuffed it into the pocket of her cloak. She smiled slightly to herself. Despite her worry over the situation with her mother, Hiccup's words filled her heart with hope. She was more determined than ever to find the answers that would aid in bringing their people together once again. But what was even more motivating was the knowledge that even if they could not find the answers they sought, that Hiccup was still willing to fight for her and their friendship. It seemed he was determined to prove himself no matter what and he seemed set on doing everything he could to show Dunbroch that his people could be trusted. This alone made her that much more determined to find the truth.</p><p>She decided that she would attempt to look through the archives once more to see what, if anything, she could find. She headed back to the castle, cutting through the kitchen as per her usual routine. But upon her arrival, she instantly stopped in her tracks when she found her mother with her back facing her, talking with one of the kitchen staff. As Merida cautiously entered, she noticed Hubert on the stairs over her mother's shoulder. His eyes gazed at her in urgency. She furrowed her brow in confusion. Hubert then pointed to his ear and then pointed to her. It took her a moment to realize he meant the wildflower over her ear. Her eyes went wide with realization and she quickly pulled the flower from her hair and hid it behind her back just as her mother turned to face her.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor seemed surprised to see her, "have ye been up already?"</p><p>"Aye, Mum," she replied, "I, uh, I was just tending to Angus." Elinor gazed at her daughter curiously. She noticed her slightly nervous expression.</p><p>"Is everything alright Merida," Elinor asked.</p><p>"I'm fine mum," Merida replied quickly as she hurried past her mother.</p><p>"Ye know about the other day," Elinor started.</p><p>"Don't worry about it Mum," Merida interrupted as she inched her way toward the stairs.</p><p>"But Merida…." Elinor started.</p><p>"Mum I...I gotta go," Merida replied, "I mean, I...I'm just filthy from the stable, I really need to get cleaned up." She quickly ran up the stairs, without waiting for a response from Elinor.</p><p>"Okay," Elinor sighed dejectedly.</p><p>Just as Merida turned the corner at the top of the stairs, she found her three brothers waiting for her. They each had their arms crossed over their chests and gazed up at their sister expectantly.</p><p>"Aye, ye saved my hide," Merida replied, "mum would have known that was a wildflower."</p><p>"We saw ye sneak out with Angus this morn," Hubert replied, "where did ye go?" Merida was speechless for a moment.</p><p>"Uh...n-nowhere," Merida replied, "I…I just took Angus out for bit...he's been awfully restless since I've been grounded and I just wanted to give him a break from the stable for a bit." Hubert raised his eyebrow at her. Merida groaned as she walked past him. Her brothers were the epitome of rule breakers, they had practically written the book on fabricated cover stories. The three of them could spot a fib from a mile away. She had been caught and she knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that now that her brothers knew she had snuck out, there was no stopping the barrage of questions she was undoubtedly about to face. And there was simply no telling what they would do if she told them the truth.</p><p>"I...I can't tell ye," Merida replied.</p><p>"What, why not." Hubert whined.</p><p>"Because..." Merida replied, "I…I just, I can't, not yet anyway. I have to figure it out first. Please just leave it alone Hubert." She started to walk past her other two brothers and started heading down the hallway.</p><p>"It's a boy isn't it," Hubert accused her. Merida felt her heart freeze as she stopped in her tracks. She turned slowly to face him with wide eyes and a blush on her face. Hubert smirked at the sight of the tell-tale expression on her face. He knew he had hit the nail on the head and he wasn't about to let her slide.</p><p>"Clam up, ye wee devil," she cried out, "ye don't know what yer sayin'."</p><p>"Aye," Hubert smirked, "is that why ye keep runnin' off, so ye could go meet a boy in the woods?"</p><p>"Hubert," she groaned, "keep yer glaikit mouth shut!"</p><p>"That's the reason ye missed yer curfew to begin with, isn't it," Hubert smirked, "what do ye think mum would say if she knew ye were with a boy after curfew, and without a chaperone?" Hubert teased</p><p>"Hubert," Merida grumbled, "I swear, I will murder ye if ye dinnae clam up this instant!" Hubert laughed as he backed away from her. Merida lunged after him.</p><p>"Yer really gonna lose yer head when mum finds out," Hubert chuckled as he continued to back away.</p><p>"Hubert Humphry Dunbroch," Merida growled, "if ye so much as breath a single word to mum then I...I...I'll tell her everything I ever kept from her about ye and all yer hair-brained pranks on Maudie!"</p><p>"Ye wouldn't," Hubert cried indignantly.</p><p>"Aye I would," Merida replied, "and don't ye dare put it past me!"</p><p>"Alright, alright," Hubert groaned, "we weren't really gonna say anything…I...I was just teasing ye." Merida groaned and rolled her eyes. She sighed heavily as she gazed at Hubert skeptically.</p><p>"Come on Merida, I swear we won't say a word," Hamish chimed in, "we just saw ye come in the front gate and we just wanted to know what ye were up to I swear we won't tell." Merida nodded as she contemplated his answer. She stayed silent for a long moment as she debated on the best course of action. It wasn't that she didn't trust her brothers, but they had been known to blurt out things by mistake. She decided she would partially explain herself without going into too much detail. After all her brothers could not blurt out what they didn't know. She turned her eyes back to Hubert and sighed once more.</p><p>"Alright," she sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest, "but only if ye swear that ye won't breathe a single word of it to anyone...especially mum!"</p><p>"Fine," Hubert replied.</p><p>"Swear it," Merida said firmly as she looked to each of them.</p><p>"Aye, we cross our hearts," Hubert replied as he drew the shape of a cross over his heart. Hamish and Harris did the same.</p><p>"Okay, come on," Merida sighed.</p><p>"Where are we going," Hubert questioned.</p><p>"Yer room," Merida replied, "I'm not talking about this out here where anyone can overhear." Hubert's eyes lit up with excitement.</p><p>"This must be a good secret," Hubert chuckled. Merida glared at him.</p><p>"Aye, I swear Hubert," Merida replied, "the three of ye better not make me regret this!"<br/>______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</p><p>A little while later:</p><p>Hiccup headed back to camp from the meeting place with Merida's letter in hand. Today he didn't linger at the hollowed tree long as he was still a little worried about Eret. At the time that Hiccup had left camp, Eret still had not returned. He hoped that when he did get back that Eret might also be back and ready to talk. He sighed heavily as he pushed the thoughts of Eret aside and focused on Merida's letter. He cracked the wax seal, gently unfolded the letter and began to read as Toothless continued walking.</p><p>…</p><p>Dear Hiccup,</p><p>I'm sorry if my last letter worried ye at all. I was just a wee bit upset over my mum. Of course, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about it still, but I am trying my best to keep a level head about it. I know my mum's only concern was for me and my well-being. Maybe we have differing opinions but that doesn't mean I'm naïve or foolish. I mean, I'm practically ready to take the throne for crying out loud. I just wish that she would trust that I am capable of makin' up my own mind on things. Sometimes I think she still sees me as that wee lass that she needs to protect from the world.</p><p>Anyway, I haven't really spoken to her since that day, not because I'm angry with her, but because I just don't know what to say. The last thing I want to do is upset her again. It was hard enough to try to keep my emotions from getting' the better o' me in the heat of our argument. Sometimes in the heat o' the moment I may say things I don't mean or worse say something that shouldn't be said. When she accused yer grandfather and yer people of such horrible things, all I wanted to do was tell her all about ye and how different ye were from any Viking she has ever known. But I was forced to bite my tongue for fear of what she'd do if she knew about ye. Not only that but my mum has this way about her, she just knows when something is weighing on my mind. I swear she can see it plain as day on my face. My worry is that she'll find out about ye and come to the wrong conclusion. If that were to happen, we would both be in a world of trouble.</p><p>So, I was thinking, maybe ye were right before. Maybe we should think about introducing ye to them. I think that coming forward is probably far better than being discovered. And don't worry, for the most part my parents are tolerant and fair people. I think there is a good chance that if we could just get them to listen, they'd give ye a fair shot. If we can just convince them to give ye a real chance, I just know without a doubt that they will see ye as I do. As far as my people go; winning over my parents would be half the battle really. I do think that this is something we will have to talk more about when I see ye tomorrow.</p><p>Speaking o' which, I do have a lot to tell ye tomorrow. I may have made a significant discovery about our mystery with the help of my brothers. It seems the wee devils are good for something after all. I will tell ye all about it tomorrow. I want ye to meet me at our meeting place first thing in the morning, I will leave the castle after breakfast. I can't wait to see ye and Toothless. Until then I'll be thinkin' o' ye both.</p><p>Love, yer friend</p><p>Merida</p><p>…</p><p>He smiled subtly as he folded the letter. He then pulled out his notebook and stuffed the letter inside the back cover. She hadn't much to say today but he was satisfied with what she did say. She was contemplating introducing him to her parents which was all that he wanted at this point. Sitting around worrying about getting caught while banished wouldn't help their situation at all. At least in meeting them he'd know exactly where he stood and if need be, he'd be able to plead his case. He only hoped when they talked about it that Merida would remain open to the idea. As nerve wracking as the thought of meeting her parents was, he felt confident that this was definitely a step in the right direction. Now he had one tiny detail left to figure out; how to tell Merida how he felt.</p><p>Hiccup sighed heavily as he thought about it. He honestly wasn't sure which was scarier, being faced with her Viking-hating parents or telling her he was falling for her. Though he had already almost told her days ago, he found himself even more nervous about it now than he was before. Ever since the night on her balcony he was determined to tell her the next time he saw her. But now that that day was practically here, he could feel his nervousness about it growing even more. He shook his head as he tried to mentally encourage himself. He just had to take a leap of faith, just jump in with two feet, figuratively of course. He sighed heavily once again as he thought of it.</p><p>Toothless could feel his rider's anxiousness and he groaned and rolled his eyes, if there was one thing his rider was good at, it was getting himself worked up about something or another. Today he seemed especially tense. The next thing he would do was talk to himself about whatever the issue was to try and find a solution, or in this case, talk himself up to doing something he was nervous about doing.</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup muttered, "I'm just gonna tell her, right. Easy, right."</p><p>"Yeah, the moment I see her tomorrow, I'll just be like: Merida I have feelings for you...and... No, no that's much too direct, I need to be more subtle. Maybe like: Hey, how ya doing, do you wanna go somewhere, and talk about our feelings?" Toothless snorted loudly to show his opposition to that idea.</p><p>"Yeah, well, what would you do," Hiccup groaned. Toothless groaned in response.</p><p>"Great," Hiccup huffed, "I must have completely lost it, I'm asking a dragon for love advice." Toothless huffed in offense to Hiccup's comment.</p><p>"Alright, alright," Hiccup sighed, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it the way it sounded. I just...I'm a little flustered bud. I mean Merida is just...she's just...she's perfect and I'm, well...me." Toothless grunted up at Hiccup.</p><p>"Your right," Hiccup replied, "I just need to stop thinking and just do it, right, I mean what's the worst that could happen right?" Hiccup shook his head as a million things that could go wrong flashed through his mind.</p><p>"Except everything," he groaned. Hiccup flopped back onto Toothless in frustration. He pressed his palms to his face in annoyance .</p><p>"This is so frustrating," he groaned, "why is everything always so complicated!" Toothless huffed and shook his head as he continued on. Hiccup closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly in an attempt to calm his overactive mind.</p><p>"I just want the moment to be perfect," Hiccup sighed, "I want to take her somewhere special to tell her...somewhere where we can just be together. Just the two of us without any distractions, and without worrying about anything else that's going on."</p><p>Suddenly Hiccup became distracted by the faint and familiar sound of murmuring coming from the left of him. He furrowed his brow as he opened his eyes. He was surprised to see a familiar blue light hovering above him. But before he could react it flitted away quickly. He sat up quickly and pulled on the reigns to bring Toothless to a halt as he looked around curiously for the small and illusive blue light. Toothless whined slightly in worry. Hiccup leaned forward and gently pat the dragon on the side of his jaw.</p><p>"It's alright Toothless," Hiccup whispered, "just be still a minute okay." The dragon did as he was told. Hiccup heard the sound again and he quickly looked in the direction from which it seemed to come. He caught a glimpse of a familiar blue light out of the corner of his eye but it seemed to vanish before he could be sure of what he had seen. He was certain it could only be the mysterious blue spirits appearing to lead him once again.</p><p>"Wil o' the wisp," he muttered under his breath. He pulled on the reigns, gently urging Toothless in the direction of the light.</p><p>"Come on Toothless," Hiccup whispered, "if it's a Wil o' the Wisp we have to follow it." They headed to the line of trees at the edge of what appeared to be a steep ridge. The closer they got Hiccup could hear the rush of water just beyond the trees. He brought Toothless to a halt again and dismounted the dragon. Toothless whined slightly but Hiccup quickly turned to him holding his finger to his mouth to bid the dragon to keep silent. He turned back to the line of trees and crept carefully forward. Just as he reached the edge of the ridge, he peered down through the trees to see if the wisps were still somewhere nearby. He could just see the edge of a pool of water surrounded by a rocky shore and the sound of the rushing water grew louder the closer he got. He carefully passed through the line of trees and followed the ridge down to the shore of the pond. As he reached the water's edge, the land opened up to the most beautiful glen he had ever seen. There seemed to be a break in the canopy of trees right over the pond showering the area with bright sunlight. The water itself was pristine and was the most vivid turquoise color he had ever seen. At the other end of the pool was a breathtaking waterfall that cascaded over the large basalt and limestone rocks of the ridge and emptied into the sparkling pool below. He could see that the pool flowed into a creek that winded through the land. The place was filled with beautiful trees, flowering wild shrubs and a rainbow of vividly colored wild flowers scattered throughout the glen. It was one of the most beautiful places he had seen in Dunbroch thus far. He couldn't help but wonder if the wisp he was sure that he had seen had led him to this place for a reason.</p><p>He sighed in contentment as he sat down on one of the rocks upon the shore. His mind drifted to Merida once again. He could feel his heart flutter as he envisioned her beautiful face, her long wild curls and sparkling sky blue eyes. Though he was nervous to tell her his feelings, he was anxious to see her again. He sighed as he took in the beautiful sight before him. This place was beautiful and peaceful, and he thought to himself that this might just be the perfect place to bring Merida to tell her how he felt about her. He smiled slightly to himself when the thought suddenly occurred to him; just moments ago he had been a little overwhelmed thinking of how he was going to confess his feelings to Merida. Out loud he had voiced his hope of how and where he wanted that moment to be. It seemed the wisps had answered him once again, and led him to this beautiful secluded glen. It wasn't the first time they seemed to answer him when it came to Merida and he couldn't help but to wonder why it seemed that the wisps were specifically helping him.<br/>________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br/>Dunbroch Castle</p><p>"So, yer sayin' that ye made friends with a boy who is not from Dunbroch," Hubert questioned. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "and ye can't tell a soul about it."</p><p>"But why," Hubert questioned, "what's the big deal?" Merida sighed.</p><p>"It's because of where he's from," Merida replied, "he's not technically supposed to be in DunBroch." The three boys gazed at her skeptically.</p><p>"W-what do ye mean, he's not supposed to be here" Hamish asked, "where is he from?"</p><p>"I can't tell ye that," Merida replied.</p><p>"What...why," Hubert asked.</p><p>"Because," Merida sighed, "If anyone finds out that he is here and where he comes from, he could get in big trouble and I don't want that to happen."</p><p>"What do ye mean Merida," Hubert questioned, "is he some kind of a criminal?"</p><p>"No," Merida replied in slight offense, "his people were...well...they were accused of something a very long time ago, but he is not a criminal."</p><p>"What are ye sayin' Merida," Hubert questioned, "is his people some kind of an enemy of Dunbroch?"</p><p>"I'm sorry boys," Merida replied, "I just...I can't tell ye anything more."</p><p>"But ye didn't tell us anything at all," Hubert complained. Merida sighed.</p><p>"I know, and I'm sorry okay," Merida replied, "Please just trust me okay, the least ye know the better...for now anyway"</p><p>"It sounds to me like this guy might be dangerous," Hamish replied, "are ye sure ye can trust him? I mean, ye've only known him for a week, how do ye know he's being honest with ye? What if he is dangerous?"</p><p>"I just know okay," Merida replied. Her brothers gazed at her skeptically.</p><p>"Trust me he isn't dangerous," Merida replied, "if he was, I'm fairly certain he would have tried something by now."</p><p>"I don't know Merida," Hamish replied, "this doesn't seem like a secret we should be keepin' from mum and dad."</p><p>"Okay look," Merida replied, "I promise, ye won't have to keep the secret much longer. He and I have already been talking about my bringing him here to meet mum and dad. He wants to form an alliance with Dunbroch. There are just some details about his people's past that we need to figure out first." The three boys looked at each other each with a look of concern on their face.</p><p>"Please boys," Merida pleaded, "I just need ye to keep quiet for a few more days, please...just give me a few more days to figure this all out okay...that's all I ask." The three boys could see that Merida genuinely seemed to care for this man whom she spoke of. She trusted him enough to help him and they trusted their sister's judgment enough to want to help her however they could.</p><p>"Alright," Hubert replied, "We'll keep quiet and we'll help ye any way we can." Merida smiled at the three of them.</p><p>"Thanks boys," she replied, "I knew I could count on ye." With that she threw her arms around the three of them. She then stood quickly and headed for the door.</p><p>"Where are you going now," Hubert asked. Merida glanced back at him and smiled.</p><p>"To get cleaned up for breakfast" Merida replied, "I'll see ye three downstairs."<br/>__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</p><p>A little later:</p><p>When Hiccup finally arrived back at camp he found Fishlegs with the dragons, busy fussing over Meatlug as was the norm, but Eret was still nowhere in sight. By this time, it had been a few hours since Eret had stormed off into the woods and Hiccup was beginning to worry. He glanced over at the path that Eret had taken earlier for a long moment. Though the two of them had a rather difficult past and had spent the past two years at odds with one another, Hiccup still cared about Eret almost as a brother. He certainly didn't want Eret to fall into any sort of trouble because of him. Not to mention the fact that Astrid would probably literally kill him if anything happened to Eret. Hiccup sighed heavily once again as he dismounted Toothless and headed over to Fishlegs.</p><p>"Hey Fish," he interrupted, "did Eret ever come back?" Fish looked up from Meatlug and over at Hiccup and shook his head.</p><p>"No, he hasn't," Fish replied. Hiccup sighed in slight frustration.</p><p>"Alright, well I'm going to go look for him then," Hiccup replied. Fish looked up at Hiccup curiously.</p><p>"You want me to come too," he questioned.</p><p>"No, you stay here, and keep the dragons out of trouble," Hiccup replied, "I'm sure he didn't go far, I'll be back in a bit." Fish nodded.</p><p>"Will do chief," Fish replied. Toothless turned and started to follow after Hiccup but Hiccup turned to stop him.</p><p>"You stay here too Bud," Hiccup said, "I don't think Eret is up for much company right now. I'm probably pushing my luck going after him as it is." Toothless whined in protest.</p><p>"I know, I know bud, you're bored," Hiccup sighed, "I get it." He patted the dragon apologetically on the side of the neck.</p><p>"Listen, I just need to talk to Eret and find out what is going on with him," Hiccup sighed again, "I promise it won't take long." Toothless nudged Hiccup with his snout.</p><p>"Alright, listen," Hiccup grinned, "maybe later, after dark, we can sneak in a flight." Toothless grinned at Hiccup excitedly and began to pad around him causing Hiccup to chuckle.</p><p>"But just a short one okay," Hiccup replied, "and preferably on the uninhabited side of the island. The last thing I want to do is get Merida into any more trouble." Toothless nodded happily.</p><p>"Alright, I'll be back," Hiccup said as he turned and headed down the path that Eret had taken.<br/>________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br/>Eret</p><p>Eret stood at the edge of a cliff, overlooking a vast fjord that led out to the open ocean. The fjord was framed with high majestic mountains on either side. On the farthest edge of the fjord, he could just see the ruins of a castle. He stood silently with arms crossed, gazing out over the distant horizon. One thing was for certain, Dunbroch was a beautiful and peaceful place. And a thought suddenly occurred to him; for some reason, being here didn't feel like visiting some foreign land, in fact it had felt strangely familiar, almost like he'd arrived home after many years away.</p><p>He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as he took in the beautiful sight. He closed his eyes for just a moment and thought back to his dream. He remembered that day as if it were just yesterday. The memory that had replayed in his dream was of his mother's last good day before she fell gravely ill. His mind drifted to the pendant that she had given him which had supposedly belonged to his father. He had kept it all these years, not because it belonged to his father, but because it was the last thing his mother had ever given him. Before, that day she had only told him very little about his father, and he had never put much stock into what little she had told him. As far as his father went, Eret could have cared less to ever know anything about the man. His mother had told him some tales about him here and there when he was young, but that's all they ever were to Eret. They were merely tall tales about a man that he never knew. But now he wasn't sure exactly what to believe.</p><p>His mind drifted back to the pendent once more. He could picture the engraved emblem of his alleged family crest; four interlocking circles behind a downward facing sword. The symbol was ingrained into his brain, and it was the same symbol pressed into the wax on Merida's letter. Try as he might, Eret could simply not make sense of this. He didn't know what it meant and he didn't know what to do about it. All he knew was that there was a very good possibility that the few stories his mother told him were true after all. But if that were the case, what exactly did that mean for him?</p><p>"Eret," Hiccup's voice interrupted his train of thought. Eret turned and glanced at Hiccup briefly as he came up beside him. Without a word, Eret nodded subtly to Hiccup and then turned his eyes back to the horizon. Hiccup looked out over the fjord as well.</p><p>"That's some view," Hiccup said nonchalantly, "you certainly can't deny that this is a beautiful place." Eret nodded in agreement but remained silent. Hiccup glanced at Eret from the corner of his eye briefly.</p><p>"Look Eret," Hiccup said, "I'm sorry about earlier...I didn't mean to push you about your dream or whatever else is bothering you. I just thought maybe you'd want to get it off your chest. I mean, sometimes just talking about it helps, ya know." Eret nodded as he turned his eyes to the ground in front of him.</p><p>"It's fine Hic, really," Eret sighed, "honestly, I shouldn't have snapped at you back there. I just have a lot on my mind at the moment and I'm not quite sure exactly what I'm dealing with right now." Hiccup looked up at Eret curiously, as he silently tried to decipher Eret's meaning.</p><p>"I figured as much," Hiccup replied, "you've been acting off since yesterday. Is it still everything with Astrid that's bothering you?"</p><p>"Well, that is always in the back of my mind," Eret admitted, "but no, this is something else entirely."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied, "well, I'm trying my best not to ask...but I'm still curious all the same. I don't suppose you want to talk about it." Eret sighed as he debated confiding in Hiccup.</p><p>"Okay look, I told you yesterday that I didn't know anything about my father," Eret sighed, "but that's not exactly completely true." Hiccup continued to gaze at him curiously.</p><p>"What do you mean exactly," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"See, my mother told me stories about him sometimes," Eret replied, "there wasn't many and it wasn't often that she spoke of him, but even as a kid I didn't think much of the stories to begin with. I mean, I didn't really believe them. When my father left us it truly broke my mom's heart. She never said so, but it was true all the same. It just seemed like telling me the stories about him made her feel better; it made her feel like he was still with us, if that makes any sense. But to tell you the truth I never truly put much stock into any of them." Hiccup nodded as he listened.</p><p>"The pendent I told you about," Eret continued, "it was the last thing my mother ever gave me before she died. It's the only reason why it's important to me now and why I've worn it till this day." Eret turned his eyes back to the horizon with a far off look in his eye.</p><p>"Anyway, that's what my dream was about," Eret sighed, "it was like the memory of the day she gave me the pendent played over in my head. Before that day all I ever knew about the pendant was that my father had given it to her before he left the last time. She never spoke of it other than that, not until that day she gave it to me." He turned to face Hiccup once again. Hiccup gazed back at him curiously and Eret could see that he was in deep thought about what he had told him.</p><p>"That day she told me everything about my father," Eret sighed distantly, "I'll never forget what she said mate." Hiccup gazed back at Eret in intrigue.</p><p>"She said that the symbol on the pendant was my family crest," Eret continued, "she told me that I came from a long line and that I have prestigious roots."</p><p>"Prestigious roots," Hiccup questioned," what exactly did she mean?" Eret shrugged.</p><p>"She claimed I had family somewhere, that the pendant was some family heirloom," Eret replied dismissively, "that it had been passed down to me starting with my great grandfather."</p><p>"A family heirloom," Hiccup questioned. His mind inadvertently flashed to his own pendant that had been passed down nearly five generations, and Merida's that had been set aside for her by her namesake. He wondered if Eret's pendant could have any connection or if the similarities between their stories and his was just some crazy coincidence.</p><p>"Well what else did she tell you about your father," Hiccup asked. Eret looked back at Hiccup.</p><p>"It's a long story mate," Eret replied.</p><p>"I don't exactly have anywhere to be," Hiccup replied with a shrug of his shoulders, "and nothing better to do either."</p><p>"Alright well," Eret sighed, "According to my mother, when she met my father, he had been on a quest to find his homeland."</p><p>"His homeland," Hiccup questioned. Eret nodded.</p><p>"Apparently, he was born a nomad, his parents never stayed in one place long, that's just how they lived. But they told him about the land from which my great grandfather came. He was so enthralled with the stories that he was determined to find the place that they described. So, when he got older, he had taken up with Vikings to continue his search. During his travels he had stumbled upon another band of Vikings that had recently raided some far-off kingdom. These particular Vikings had not only stolen valuables and goods, but also taken a few young women from their homes as well. Now, my mother never said why they were taken, but I can only imagine it was nothing good." Hiccup shook his head in abhorrence as he thought of the unfortunate, kid-napped women.</p><p>"Turns out," Eret went on, "my mother was one of those women and according to her my father helped her escape." Hiccup raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"Really," Hiccup questioned. Eret nodded.</p><p>"He took her to a village that he trusted, and the clan took her in as one of their own and protected her. Eventually, one thing led to another and they fell in love, married in some secret ceremony and shortly after had me. But dear old dad was still obsessed with this homeland of his and he never gave up his search; which is why he was hardly around my whole life."</p><p>"That's crazy," Hiccup replied, "and she told you all of this when she gave you the pendant?" Eret nodded.</p><p>"She did," he sighed, "but as I said, I never believed any of it. I mean she liked to tell me grand tales of him now and again. And particularly at the end she didn't always make a lot of sense, so none of the stories meant anything to me. They didn't matter, ya know." Hiccup nodded as he listened.</p><p>"Well, what about your mother's family," Hiccup questioned, "Did she ever tell you about them?" Eret shook his head.</p><p>"My mom never spoke of her own family nor where she was from," Eret replied, "but after she told me what happened to her, I can only imagine that the memory of her home and former life just hurt too much to talk about." Eret sighed heavily and turned his eyes back to the horizon.</p><p>"It's crazy Hic," Eret sighed, "I mean, all of this is always in the back of my mind, ya know, but I haven't like actually thought about all of it in years. I've certainly never told anybody about it either."</p><p>"Okay so, what do you think is bringing all of this up now, "Hiccup questioned. Eret remained quiet for a long moment as he silently thought over Hiccup's question. His eyes once more fell upon the horizon as the image of his 'family crest' flashed though his mind. He glanced at Hiccup from the corner of his eye, unsure if he should say anymore. He sighed once more as he came to his decision.</p><p>"Well, I...I don't know exactly," Eret replied, "maybe it's because I told you the truth about my father, like I said I haven't thought about it for years and I certainly have never talked about it," Eret replied, "not with anyone besides Astrid anyway." Hiccup looked at Eret in intrigue as he thought of the story Eret had just told him.</p><p>"Uh, you mentioned that the symbol on the pendent is possibly your family crest," Hiccup questioned, "what exactly is it….I mean what does it look like?"</p><p>"Uh, it's just a sword," Eret replied nonchalantly, "well technically there are two sides to it, one side is a sword and on the other is uh…the face of a dragon."</p><p>"That's it," Hiccup asked curiously, "nothing like more specific, just a sword and a dragon?"</p><p>"Yeah," Eret replied as he purposely avoided Hiccup's curious gaze.</p><p>"Okay well what about the dragon," Hiccup asked, "was it a specific type of dragon? I mean based on the breed of dragon, maybe we could narrow down the location of this 'homeland'."</p><p>"Okay, just hold on a minute," Eret huffed, "I didn't say anything about wanting to find this 'homeland."</p><p>"Well, no," Hiccup replied, "I just thought..."</p><p>"Thought what mate," Eret huffed, "that I'd want to follow in my father's footsteps...leave my family in search of some bloody island I've never even set foot on?"</p><p>"No... that's not what I'm saying at all," Hiccup replied, "I...I just thought, you'd want to know where you came from. I mean, I would want to know."</p><p>"Yeah well, you're not me mate," Eret replied in frustration, "my father abandoned me to go traipsing off after some bloody pipe dream. He died trying to find that place without even a thought about me or my mother or what that would do to us. I will never do that to Astrid or my child!" Hiccup gazed at Eret with a serious expression on his face.</p><p>"What happened with your father is different," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"How," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Well, from what you said, your father was determined to find his homeland on his own," Hiccup replied, "you are not alone!" Eret shook his head in denial as he turned his gaze back to the horizon.</p><p>"You have me and Fish and the other riders," Hiccup replied, "You have Astrid. I mean, do you seriously think Astrid would let you go looking for this place on your own? Hiccup raised an eyebrow at him causing Eret to chuckle slightly.</p><p>"I guess you have a point," Eret replied. Hiccup smiled reassuringly in Eret's direction.</p><p>"Look, all I'm saying is that maybe this is worth looking into," Hiccup went on, "I mean, whatever you decide to do, obviously is up to you. Astrid and I and the other riders, will always back you up either way. We are your family now and we won't abandon you and we certainly won't let you lose focus on what's important regardless of whatever you decide to do." Eret sighed heavily as he silently went over everything Hiccup had said.</p><p>"Just think about it okay," Hiccup replied, "and if you change your mind, I'm here to help." Eret turned to Hiccup and smiled slightly.</p><p>"I'll think about it," Eret replied, "but let's just focus on one mystery at time, mate. We still have to get to the bottom of Berk's banishment, so you can be with your princess." Hiccup smirked at Eret and rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Right," Hiccup replied with a grin as he turned back to the trail and started heading back to camp.</p><p>"Speaking of which," Eret grinned mischievously as he followed after him, "When are we going to finally meet this girl. Isn't today her last day of being stuck in that castle." Hiccup sighed.</p><p>"It is," Hiccup shrugged, "but I don't know about introducing her to you guys, just yet." Eret furrowed his brow at Hiccup's comment.</p><p>"What," Eret chuckled, "Oh come on Hic, what are you, embarrassed by your Viking friends."</p><p>"Don't be ridiculous," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Then what's the problem," Eret questioned.</p><p>"There's no problem," Hiccup replied, "I mean, I haven't seen her in three days, I just...I just want to spend a little bit of time with her... alone preferably." Eret's smile grew.</p><p>"Ah, I get it," Eret replied smugly, "you're hoping to tell her how you feel finally." Hiccup rolled his eyes, but he could not hide the blush on his face.</p><p>"See, this is why I don't tell you things," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"No, you don't tell me things because we haven't been friends in two years," Eret replied.</p><p>"Point taken," Hiccup sighed, "alright look, she wants me to wait for her at the meeting place, then I was going to take her somewhere private so we could talk. I don't know for sure if I will tell her tomorrow or not. That all depends."</p><p>"Depends on what," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Well, I just...I want the timing to be perfect, ya know," Hiccup replied, "I...I don't want to like scare her off or anything. So, if I'm not feeling the moment, I might not even bring it up, ya know. I just want to play it by ear, I guess." Eret furrowed his brow as he gazed back at Hiccup.</p><p>"Scare her off," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Yeah well, not that it's any of your business," Hiccup replied, "but like me, she also has some of her own issues with love. I certainly don't want to push the issue if she isn't ready. Besides, there's always the chance that she doesn't feel the same way. I mean, what if I tell her and she only thinks of me as a friend. I mean, I don't want to jeopardize our friendship either."</p><p>"Hic," Eret sighed, "I think that you may be overthinking all of this just a bit." Hiccup sighed heavily.</p><p>"I know," Hiccup huffed, "look I...I just don't want to screw this up, okay. I care about Merida and I don't want lose her, even if we are only meant to be friends. I'm afraid that if I overstep that I'll push her away."</p><p>"Hic," Eret interrupted, "you can't think of it that way. You can't let your fears about what could happen stop you from taking a real chance. If you don't tell her how ye truly feel about her mate, then you'll never know how she really feels about you." Hiccup sighed once more as he thought over what Eret had said.</p><p>"I mean think of it from the other angle too," Eret went on, "what if she does feel the same about you, but you never tell her how you feel. She may start to believe that you don't care. She may even give up on you. Maybe she'd even move on with someone else. Could you live with that mate?" Hiccup could feel his heart lurch with Eret's words. The mere thought of Merida with someone else caused an ache in his chest that was almost too much to bear. It was the same feeling that stirred within his heart when Merida told him of her fear of falling in love and what was expected of her to gain the throne. The last thing he wanted was for Merida to settle for some Noble or Lord for the sake of her throne. He knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she deserved so much more than that. If by some miracle she was willing to take a chance on him, he would give her his heart completely, no questions asked.</p><p>"I guess I didn't really think about it that way," Hiccup muttered.</p><p>"Look Hic, if you truly care about her," Eret continued, "you can't hold back...you need to tell her about it, tell her everything that you feel." Hiccup nodded silently as he mulled over Eret's advice. Perhaps Eret was right. It was time that he took a real chance, a leap of faith. His heart was pounding at the thought of telling her but he knew that if he didn't take that chance than he would never know how she truly felt about him.</p><p>"Maybe you're right," Hiccup muttered.</p><p>"Of course, I'm right," Eret replied with a smirk, "listen, when you see her tomorrow you should just clear your head, don't think about any of your second thoughts. Just focus on Merida and what she means to you and I promise the right words will come. Let the chips fall where they may. I have a good feeling it may go better than expected.</p><p>"Do you think so," Hiccup questioned. Eret smiled at him reassuringly.</p><p>"Don't worry mate," Eret replied, "from everything you've told us about her, it seems to me she is just as fond of you as you are of her." Hiccup nodded as Eret spoke.</p><p>"I really hope you are right," Hiccup sighed.</p><p>"So where are you taking her," Eret questioned.</p><p>"Well on the way back from the meeting spot, me and Toothless stumbled upon this little glen," Hiccup replied, "It's really nice, sort of secluded, absolutely beautiful. I think I'll take her there."</p><p>"Sounds nice Hic," Eret replied with a distant tone. Hiccup noticed Eret's change in demeanor once again. He turned and gazed at him for a long moment.</p><p>"You sure you're okay," Hiccup asked. Eret looked up at him and smiled slightly.</p><p>"I'm fine," Eret replied dismissively, "don't worry about me mate...you have more important things to think about." He elbowed him suggestively. Hiccup smiled and rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Okay, okay," Hiccup replied, "you're as bad as Toothless, ya know that!"</p><p>"Well, listen to your dragon, Hic," Eret replied playfully, "I mean if Toothless approves of this girl than she's probably the one, mate...just saying."<br/>____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<br/>Dunbroch castle</p><p>Merida once again found herself in the archives looking for anything she could find regarding Berk or the Vikings. She was having no luck and seriously beginning to doubt that she would ever find anything. She didn't understand how a whole entire portion of Dunbroch history could be missing from the archives. She began to wonder if the records had been tampered with. Perhaps someone had seen fit to erase Berk from Dunbroch history completely. Perhaps the lack of evidence was evidence in itself. Merida sighed as she pondered this.</p><p>Her mother was right about one thing, Mairead and Hiccup the first's love affair would have surely been a massive scandal. It was certainly possible that the King himself had the records destroyed in order to cover up the scandal entirely. If this were true than the only record of Berk in Dunbroch at all was that of her grandmother's journal and what little her father had told her. The thought was disheartening to say the least. She wondered if Mairead's father had done this to protect his daughter's name. It seemed excessive to delete an entire portion of history simply to cover up the evidence of Mairead's and Hiccup's brief romance. What would it matter in the long run? Mairead still married Callum in the end and Hiccup the first never returned to Dunbroch. Merida was beginning to wonder if there could be more to the story. But what more could the King have been trying to hide? She sighed heavily. It seemed that for every clue that they discovered in this mystery even more questions arose. She was beginning to wonder if they would ever get to the bottom of it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The glen that Hiccup discovers is inspired by the fairy pools on the Isle of Skye in Scotland.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Speaking from the Heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>FYI, this chapter contains a small semi-edited portion of lyrics from Rewrite the Stars, from the musical The greatest Showman.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 20.</p><p> </p><p>..........<br/>
Merida found herself once again standing in the center of the standing stones. Before her stood the Viking from her previous dream. He stood silently gazing at her with his intense green eyes just as before. Merida's heart froze at the sight of him. He stepped forward slowly until he was only inches away from her. Without a word, he reached forward and gently took her hand. She could feel the roughness of his skin as he tenderly grasped her hand in his. Just as before, when he touched her it felt as if her heart had been struck by lightning. As she gazed back at him nervously, she could feel her heart racing and her face flush.</p><p>"My heart is yours," he said softly, "and always will be." His heartfelt words and the tenderness with which he spoke them to her made her heart skip and her breath catch in her throat. He continued to gaze at her with an intense longing emanating from his deep green eyes causing Merida to shiver slightly. He slowly raised his other hand and gently touched the side of her face brushing her unruly red curls behind her ear. She could feel goosebumps where his fingers had grazed her skin and her heart was beating so fast it felt as if it might burst from her chest. The way he looked at her and the tender way he touched her face reminded her of Hiccup and her mind inadvertently flashed back to a moment she had shared with him on her balcony:<br/>
..........<br/>
Hiccup smiled warmly at her as he reached up slowly and brushed more of her curls away from her beautiful face. Merida shivered slightly as his fingertips grazed her cheek.</p><p>"I'm glad you speak from your heart," Hiccup replied softly, "I'm glad that you tell me like it is, and you don't hold back. It's what I like about you the most I think." Merida's heart skipped a beat with his words. Hiccup took a deep breath as he continued to gaze at her longingly. Merida could feel her heart racing in anticipation of what he seemed to be trying to say.</p><p>"In fact, maybe I should speak from my heart too," he said.<br/>
......<br/>
She held her breath as she continued to gaze up at the Viking. Until this very moment she had not realized just how much he reminded her of Hiccup. She supposed if the Viking truly was Hiccup's great, great grandfather as she believed him to be, that this could be the reason she saw such similarities between the two of them now. But of all his features his eyes were the most similar. His eyes were mesmerizing and as she gazed into them, she found it nearly impossible to look away. The Viking smiled slightly for the first time in all of her previous dreams. He slowly leaned forward keeping his eyes locked with hers and for a moment she thought he might kiss her, and strangely enough, she found herself almost wishing he would.</p><p>"I will wait forever if you'd be mine," he said.<br/>
.....</p><p>Merida sat up instantly. She looked around for a moment in slight confusion, before realizing she was still in her bed.</p><p>"Just a dream," she murmured to herself as she leaned forward and rubbed her eyes. It had been a few days since she had a dream of the Viking and she wondered the significance. She furrowed her brow as she thought about it. It wasn't quite the recurring one that had haunted her for weeks. It was slightly different this time, it felt more personal, and slightly more intense. Inadvertently she raised her hand to her cheek where the Viking had touched her. She could almost feel his fingertips still. She sighed heavily as she tried to make sense of the strong feelings from the dream that nearly left her breathless. The way she felt in the presence of the Viking was almost as strong as her feelings for Hiccup.</p><p>She wondered how it was possible to feel such a way about a man she had never known and she wondered if somehow the feelings in her dream were not her own. She recalled Hiccup's hypothesis about his own dream, that the feelings he felt for Mairead were somehow influenced by his great, great grandfather. Perhaps the way she felt for the Viking had been influenced by her grandmother as well. Perhaps even her own feelings for Hiccup had somehow influenced this dream itself. She sighed heavily as she flopped back upon her mattress and gazed up at the canopy above her bed. She smiled slightly when she remembered that today she was finally free to leave the castle walls. She sat up quickly and nearly leapt from her bed as she hurried to get dressed. Today she was going to see Hiccup for the first time in days and nothing was going to stop her.<br/>
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Elinor sat quietly at the breakfast table. She sighed heavily taking little notice of the normal chaos among her sons as they fought with each other and played with their food. Her mind was fixed on Merida. For the past two days, Merida had avoided her mother and had little to say to her after their argument. To Elinor this was a terrible setback for the relationship between her and her daughter. Elinor was sure that there was more going on with Merida than she would say, she just wished that Merida would confide in her. Her fear was that after their argument Merida would fall into her old routine of pulling away from her mother and internalizing the things that were weighing on her mind. On top of all of this, Elinor still had yet to tell Merida of the Lord's proposal. Though she had been dreading to break the news to Merida for the past week, she had decided to finally tell her daughter everything this morning. Elinor's fear was that telling her would only cause Merida to pull away even more.</p><p>Fergus gently lay a hand upon Elinor's arm distracting her from her troubled thoughts. She looked up at her husband and smiled weakly but her worry still shone through her dark brown eyes. Fergus smiled back at her in reassurance.</p><p>"I don't know about this Fergus," she said softly, "maybe I should wait...at least until she isn't so angry with me." Fergus shook his head.</p><p>"Dear we've talked about this," Fergus replied, "ye said yerself that the longer we wait the harder she'll take it. We've waited a week to tell her, if ye don't tell her soon, she'll be finding out from the Lord's themselves when they arrive. I mean, how do ye think she'll take it then?"</p><p>"Aye," Elinor sighed, "I know yer right...I just...I hate to do this to her, again. After we gave her our word that she would be free to choose for herself."</p><p>"She will understand," Fergus replied, "I mean it's not as if we're goin' back on our word dear...we just mean to put on a show for the benefit of the Lords and their sons." Elinor nodded as she sighed once more.</p><p>The two were distracted suddenly when Merida burst happily into the dining hall causing both her parents to look up in her direction in bewilderment. She sauntered to the table humming to herself with a smile on her face and a spark in her eye that neither of her parents had seen in days.</p><p>"Good mornin' lass," Fergus greeted.</p><p>"Mornin' Dad," she smiled as she leaned down beside him and kissed his cheek.</p><p>"What's all this then," Fergus smiled, "what's got ye in such a good mood today?"</p><p>"Nothin'," Merida smiled, "just lookin' forward to takin' Angus out today." Elinor gazed at her daughter curiously. Merida turned to her mother and smiled.</p><p>"Mornin' Mum," she greeted as she sat in her place.</p><p>"Mornin' dear," Elinor replied as she watched Merida. Merida reached forward and took a shiny red apple from the bowl in the middle of the table then took a quick bite. She looked up suddenly to see her parent's gazing at her curiously.</p><p>"What," she asked in confusion. Elinor and Fergus quickly averted their eyes for a moment.</p><p>"It's nothin' Merida," Elinor replied glancing up at her again, "it's just ye haven't seemed this happy in days and after our argument the other day...well I thought..."</p><p>"Mum," Merida sighed, "it was just an argument, it's not the end o' the world. I'm sorry I overreacted...and I'm sorry I worried ye, I...I've just had a lot on my mind is all." Elinor smiled slightly at her daughter.</p><p>"Well," Elinor sighed, "I'm sorry too. I overreacted as well. I sometimes forget that ye are a grown woman now, with yer own mind. I've taught ye all I can from my own experience, but tis nae my place to tell ye what to believe or what to feel. If ye feel that ye need to investigate the banishment of the Berkan Vikings further, then ye should do so." Merida smiled at her mother.</p><p>"Thanks mum," she replied. Elinor nodded at her daughter and smiled in return.</p><p>"Isn't that nice," Fergus chuckled, "my two girls getting' along once again."</p><p>"Fergus," Elinor sighed. Fergus leaned forward and kissed his wife on the cheek. He then turned his attention back to Merida.</p><p>"Tell me Merida," Fergus smiled brightly, "have ye found anything new about Berk."</p><p>"No," Merida sighed, "I've had about as much luck as ye dad." Fergus chuckled.</p><p>"Well, what is it exactly that ye hope tae find lass."</p><p>"I don't know exactly," Merida replied, "I just feel as though something is missing from the story. I mean if our clans were once such close allies, what could have turned it so sour that the king would banish them. I just can't stop thinking that it just doesn't quite add up."</p><p>"Aye, I've always felt that way myself lass," Fergus replied, "it seems a shame that there may be no way of ever finding the whole truth. And with the Berkans being wiped out there is no way tae hear the other side of it either." Merida furrowed her brow in confusion.</p><p>"Wiped out," Merida questioned, "what do ye mean wiped out?" Fergus shrugged.</p><p>"All I know is what my great nana told me; she said that a few years after the clan of Vikings returned to Berk a great weyr of dragons descended upon them and exacted their revenge for hunting and killin' their kind. As the story goes, the entire clan was wiped out in a single attack and not a single man woman or child was left alive."</p><p>"But that's impossible," Merida blurted out without thought. Both her parents looked at her in confusion. Merida realized her blunder and quickly tried to right her words.</p><p>"I...I mean, the Berkans, t-they were famed dragon hunters," she replied, "they were skilled enough to clear all of Dunbroch of the dragons here. How is it possible that the dragons could have wiped out the entire clan…and in a single attack, no less?" Fergus shrugged.</p><p>"All I know is that not long after their clan returned to Berk the dragons attacked and no one has ever seen or heard from them again."</p><p>"It's a known fact Merida," Elinor replied, "the story is in the archives, but I'd say the fact that no one has heard from nor seen any survivors of Berk in nearly three hundred years is proof enough." Merida gazed at her mother with a bewildered expression. Hiccup told her he was the great, great grandson of Hiccup the first. His great grandfather, grandfather and father had passed the title of chief down to him. Nearly four generations of Haddocks had been chief of Berk since Hiccup the first. They certainly weren't chief of an extinct tribe. Her mind flashed back to what Hiccup had told her of his tribe previously.</p><p>..........</p><p>"See, up until about five years ago," Hiccup replied "Berk was at war with dragons, after having fought with them for almost 300 years. In all that time we lost most ties with other tribes...not to mention a good amount of our written history. I mean most of what we know has just been passed down by word of mouth."<br/>
..........</p><p>Of course, it made sense. The dragons had descended upon Berk, but they hadn't wiped out the Vikings. Berk had spent the last three hundred years at war with them, causing them to lose contact with nearly all of their allies. How had the story been twisted in Dunbroch? Did that also mean that Mairead truly believed that her true love was killed in a dragon raid? In her mind's eye, Merida saw the image of Mairead standing on the cliffs overlooking the ocean clutching her pendant against her heart. She remembered her father's words.</p><p>......</p><p>"When I was just a wee lad," Fergus said, "sometimes great nana and I would ride to the bluffs to have a picnic. Once in a while, I would catch her looking out to sea, clutching this pendent with a sad, far off look in her eye. She never told me, but I imagined she may have been missing great grand-da."</p><p>........</p><p>But Merida knew that the man her great, great grandmother longed for and perhaps had mourned was not her husband, but her one true love Hiccup Horrendous Haddock I. Merida could feel an aching in her heart as she thought of it. Could Mairead have lived her whole life believing that Hiccup the first had been tragically killed? More importantly, who had brought her this false news. Who was responsible for falsely claiming that the entire tribe of Berk had been killed? Not only that, but Merida found it extremely odd that she could not find a single log of why Berk had been banished, yet the story of their alleged demise was a known fact and recorded in the archives. Something clearly did not add up. She wondered if this massive lie was her great, great grandfather's doing. Perhaps in his jealousy he had lied, maybe he was even responsible for Berk's banishment. Elinor noticed the troubled look on Merida's face.</p><p>"Merida," Elinor questioned, "is something wrong?" Merida looked up at her mother and shook her head, but she still displayed a heavy-hearted expression on her face.</p><p>"No," she replied quickly, "it's nothing, I…I guess I'm just surprised is all. I…I mean I didn't think that Berk's story had ended in such a way."</p><p>"Aye lass," Fergus replied, "tis a great tragedy, regardless of the fact that we were enemies at the end, Berk still did us a great service by ridding our land of dragons. It's a shame they ne'er had the chance tae clear their name."</p><p>"Great, great nana must have been heartbroken," Merida replied softly. Fergus looked up at her curiously. Merida looked up as she realized her father was gazing at her.</p><p>"Uh...because she was friends with the chief's son," Merida replied, "it must hae broken her heart tae know he'd been lost." No sooner had the words left her lips did Merida's mind flash back to the words from Hiccup's letter.</p><p>....</p><p>"The house of Adag is lost, "Exiled and forgotten, "it is said an Adag will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond.</p><p>.....</p><p>Could this be it, could this be the meaning behind Mairead's strange message? When she said the house of Adag had been lost, could this have been what she meant; that the clan of Berk had been killed off? Exiled and forgotten, because they had been banished and never heard from again. Maybe Merida and Hiccup were being led to expose this tragic lie. Hiccup was meant to lead his clan to Dunbroch to rebuild the alliance. There was also a good chance that since the story of Berk's demise was obviously a lie that the reason for their banishment was also a fabrication. This was a huge breakthrough; one she could barely wait to tell Hiccup about. She smiled suddenly in excitement.</p><p>"Mum," she said suddenly, "may I be excused?" Elinor gazed at her daughter curiously.</p><p>"Aye dear," Elinor replied, "but before ye go, I..."</p><p>"Thanks mum," she replied as she quickly stood from her place and began to collect her bow and quiver.</p><p>"Aye, but Merida," Elinor said firmly causing her daughter to pause in her actions and look back at her, "I have something to say to ye."</p><p>"What is it," Merida asked curiously. She gazed back at her mother with a smile on her face. Elinor gazed at Merida feeling extremely guilty about what she was about to say to her daughter. The last thing she wanted to do was to upset her in any way. But the news of the Lord's proposal was sure to do just that. Elinor shook her head as she debated her actions. The sight of Merida smiling was one she hadn't seen in days since her grounding and she couldn't bring herself to upset her today. Elinor sighed heavily. Merida took notice of Elinor's troubled expression and became slightly concerned.</p><p>"Mum," Merida questioned in slight concern, "what is it?" Elinor shook her head and forced a smile.</p><p>"It's nothing," Elinor replied, "Just...be sure ye keep yer curfew. Yer not to be a minute late, I mean it." Merida nodded.</p><p>"I promise," Merida replied. She gazed at her mother for a moment longer.</p><p>"Go on," Elinor replied, "Angus is waiting patiently I'm sure." Merida smiled once more and then turned and quickly headed out of the dining room.</p><p>......</p><p>Hiccup found himself once again in the presence of Mairead. She stood silently gazing at him with those sky-blue eyes that were so eerily similar to those of Merida. He could feel his heart racing as he gazed upon her.</p><p>As Mairead slowly glided forward, he froze in awe of her. Once again, he was struck by the intense longing that seemed to always pervade his heart whenever he was in her presence. Mairead slowly lifted one of her hands and placed it gently upon his cheek, causing his breath to catch in his throat. Once again, Hiccup found himself overwhelmed by the intense feelings that ran through him at the touch of her delicate hand. He could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest as he gazed back at her curiously.</p><p>"It's you," she whispered with heartfelt emotion in her voice "it's always been you; it's been you all this time." Hiccup gazed at her in confusion. Her words that she had repeated to him in nearly all his dreams struck a chord in his heart. As before her words were spoken with such meaning and such genuine emotion. He'd been sure before that her words were meant for his grandfather but he couldn't help to feel as though they were somehow also meant for him.</p><p>He reached up, gently covering the hand she had laid upon his face with his own. The feel of her soft hand beneath his made him tremble. He inadvertently leaned slightly forward, wanting nothing more than to capture her perfect pink lips in a tender kiss. It seemed to take everything in him to stop himself from doing so. He wordlessly gazed back into her sparkling blue eyes. He still was amazed by her uncanny resemblance to her great, great granddaughter and yet it still perturbed him that he could have such intense feelings for them both. He was confused suddenly when some unseen force seemed to grab his shoulder and shake him violently.<br/>
......</p><p>Hiccup opened his eyes to see Toothless over him. He had his mouth on the arm of his tunic and he was anxiously shaking him to wake him from his slumber.</p><p>"I'm up, I'm up," Hiccup replied groggily. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned. It was still fairly early and he could see that Fish and the other dragons were still fast asleep, but Eret was up and working to start a fire. He yawned and stretched his arms over his head.</p><p>The dream was still fresh in his mind and he sat for a few moments contemplating it. It was strange that this new dream was nearly the same as his first dream with only slight differences here and there. But Máiréad's words were still exactly the same and still just as confusing. In all of his dreams he had been shown a different clue but for some reason Mairead had reiterated her original message and Hiccup couldn't help but wonder why. Toothless whined at his rider impatiently and then nudged him once again. Hiccup looked up at the dragon and grinned at him.</p><p>"Something tells me you are anxious to see Merida today," Hiccup replied. Toothless chirped excitedly in response. Hiccup chuckled slightly as he stood from his place as he gazed at Toothless in amusement.</p><p>"That's alright bud," Hiccup replied, "So am I." He quickly reached for his Tunic and pulled it over his head, then refastened his leather gauntlets, he then knelt down by the edge of the creek and washed his face in the cool water. A few moments later he headed over the fire where Eret was sitting.</p><p>"Good morning Hic," Eret greeted.</p><p>"Morning," Hiccup replied as he walked over to the food bag and threw a few apples in his satchel for the ride.</p><p>"Why on earth does she want to meet you this early for," Eret said flatly. Hiccup shrugged as he glanced over at Eret for a moment.</p><p>"I don't mind," Hiccup replied, "I'd rather not waste the day just sitting around waiting all day." Eret nodded his head at Hiccup's answer. Eret watched a moment as Hiccup finished securing the saddle to Toothless and then turned back to grab a few more things.</p><p>"So," Eret sighed, "are you nervous?" Hiccup looked up at him and shrugged.</p><p>"A little," he replied distractedly." Eret grinned slightly.</p><p>"So, I'm guessing if all goes well," Eret replied smugly, "we should probably not wait up for you then." Hiccup grinned slightly.</p><p>"Are you kidding," Hiccup replied, "I haven't seen her in three days because I kept her past her curfew once. I will definitely not be doing that again." Eret chuckled.</p><p>"Besides," Hiccup went on, "we've been talking about my meeting her parents. I'm certainly not going to jeopardize my chance to make a good impression by breaking any rules."</p><p>"Well, I hate to break it to you mate," Eret replied as he crossed his arms over his chest, "but you are already breaking the rules just by being here."</p><p>"Yeah well," Hiccup sighed, "I'm hoping that by coming forward, they will see that my intentions are honorable."</p><p>"Honorable intentions," Eret replied, "Hic, you're starting to sound quite serious about this girl."</p><p>"I think I am," Hiccup replied with a slight grin, "and I...I just want her parents to see that I'm worthy of her."</p><p>"Well, first thing's first mate," Eret replied, "you need to tell the girl how you feel about her."</p><p>"That's the plan," Hiccup replied as he quickly mounted Toothless.</p><p>"Good luck mate," Eret replied. Hiccup smiled back at his old friend.</p><p>"Thanks," Hiccup replied as he urged the dragon forward. "Let's go Bud."<br/>
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A little while later:</p><p>Merida urged Angus forward at full gallop as they made their way through the dense woods in the direction of the meeting place. When she started to recognize by her surroundings, she pulled back on the reigns slightly to slow Angus down to a steady trot. She scanned the area anxiously the closer she got to the meeting place in hopes to see Hiccup waiting for her. As she approached the old hollowed out tree, Merida suddenly noticed Toothless sitting by the trail up ahead. She smiled brightly at the sight of the dragon and urged her horse to quicken his pace. As she directed Angus toward Toothless, she furrowed her brow in slight concern as her eyes searched for Hiccup, but the Viking seemed to be nowhere in sight. She pulled back on the reigns to slow Angus down to a halt directly in front of the dragon. Toothless seemed to smile at her with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Merida chuckled in spite of herself. He happily approached her, padding about before the horse in excitement.</p><p>"Toothless," she greeted happily as she patted him on the head, "Aye, yer a sight for sore eyes." She looked around the area curiously.</p><p>"What are ye doing in the middle o' the path Toothless," she questioned, "and where's Hiccup?" The dragon just turned his head to the side and chirped as he gazed at her with his signature toothless grin.</p><p>"Sorry princess," Hiccup's voice echoed from the left of her. She turned to see him leaning his back up against a tree with his arms crossed and a playful smirk on his face. She felt her heart flutter at the sight of him and she smiled slightly.</p><p>"We can't let you pass without paying the toll," he smirked as he stepped forward. Merida raised an eyebrow at him. He came up beside the horse and looked up at her mischievously. Hiccup could feel his heart begin to race at the sight of her. From the moment he first saw her, Hiccup thought she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen; now after having not seen her in days, the sight of her struck his heart just as it had that first day.</p><p>"Is that so," she replied haughtily, "and what pray-tell is this toll ye speak of." Hiccup shrugged as he grinned up at her.</p><p>"Oh, I don't know," he sighed, "maybe a couple of sweet rolls for the dragon, and a couple of apples for me." Merida smirked at him.</p><p>"I'll have ye know that it's a crime to charge the princess a toll to pass on her own land." Hiccup raised his eyebrows in amusement.</p><p>"Is it now," he questioned, "well, my apologies your highness. I assure you my crime was committed in ignorance as I am foreign to this land and am unaware of its many laws. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me."</p><p>"Aye, well, what's one more added to yer list of crimes," she replied with a wave of her hand. Hiccup furrowed his brow in amusement as he looked up at her.</p><p>"List," he questioned, "what other crimes exactly am I being accused of?"</p><p>"Hmm, let me see," Merida replied haughtily, "trespassing, violating yer banishment, keepin' a princess past her curfew, oh and sneaking onto castle grounds uninvited." Hiccup smirked up at her.</p><p>"Well, you got me there, princess. I am certainly guilty of all of the above," Hiccup replied, "but I must confess, I remain unapologetic."</p><p>"Aye, are ye certain o' that," Merida questioned, "ye may just live to regret it, if my mum decides to lock ye away and toss the key."</p><p>"Oh, I beg to differ," Hiccup replied as he grinned up at her. Merida raised a brow at him and smiled slightly.</p><p>"Oh, ye do, do ye," Merida replied as she put her hands on her hips.</p><p>"Of course," Hiccup replied matter-of-factly, "see, every moment of my 'crimes', was a moment I got to spend with you. I don't see how I could possibly regret that." He smiled up at her warmly. Merida blushed slightly as she chuckled. She quickly dismounted Angus but in her excitement her foot became caught in the stir up. As she attempted to leap down from the horse, she clumsily fell forward with a yelp. Acting quickly, Hiccup tried to catch her but he lost his footing and the two of them clumsily tumbled to ground. He landed on his back with her still in his arms. Merida looked down at him for a moment and blushed slightly. Hiccup just lay there for a moment as he reached up and clutched his head. He groaned slightly.</p><p>"Hiccup are ye alright," she asked. Hiccup looked up at her and smiled slightly.</p><p>"I've certainly been worse," he replied. Merida chuckled as she quickly pulled away from him. She stood up and offered him her hand. Hiccup sat up slowly and gazed up at her still rubbing the back of his head where it had struck the ground.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I don't know what happened," she laughed, "I'm usually a bit more graceful than that." Hiccup raised an eyebrow at her.</p><p>"Graceful," he replied questioningly, "may I remind you that this isn't the first time you fell on me while dismounting a large animal." He took her hand and allowed her to pull him up.</p><p>"I didnae fall on ye," Merida replied haughtily, "Toothless knocked me into ye." Hiccup smirked.</p><p>"Either way, I was still forced to catch you," he replied. Merida raised an eyebrow at him.</p><p>"Oh, ye were forced were ye," she questioned in annoyance.</p><p>"Well, I certainly didn't have a choice in the matter," Hiccup replied as he crossed his arms over his chest. Merida raised her eyebrows in mock offense as she put her hands on her hips.</p><p>"Well, I'm sorry that being chivalrous is such a chore for ye," she replied flatly. Hiccup chuckled slightly.</p><p>"Well, when it comes to you, chivalry certainly feels like a chore," Hiccup replied, "I mean half the time I don't know whether you'll be grateful or offended by it."</p><p>"Is that so," Merida grumbled, "well, next time don't bother at all!" She stared up at him with an annoyed look on her face, but try as he might he could not stop himself from smiling at her.</p><p>"So, what exactly would you have me do princess," he replied as he stepped closer to her, "just stand back and watch you fall. I'm sure that would go over well." He smirked playfully as he gazed at her. He could see that she was trying very hard to fight a smile from breaking through her annoyed expression.</p><p>"Do you remember what you said to me that first day I rescued you," Hiccup asked. Merida rolled her eyes. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>"You said that you could get used to a Viking in dragon armor coming to your rescue," Hiccup said.</p><p>"Aye, so," Merida replied.</p><p>"So, I suggest you get used to it princess," Hiccup sighed, "because I'll always be here to catch you, whether you like it or not." Merida smiled up at him.</p><p>Without a word, she quickly threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Hiccup was taken aback for a moment by her unexpected action and nearly tumbled backward again. He chuckled lightly as he regained his balance. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her back.</p><p>"I missed ye," she said happily. Hiccup smiled at her words and tightened his arms around her just a little more.</p><p>"I missed you too," he replied softly. She pulled away slowly as she smiled brightly up at him, causing his heart to flutter. He gazed back at her warmly.</p><p>"I have so much to tell ye," she exclaimed. As she gazed up at him, her sky-blue eyes nearly sparkled with excitement. Hiccup nearly melted at the sight. Having not seen her in days, he realized just exactly how much he had missed her. Hiccup smiled back at her warmly as he shook his head in amusement.</p><p>"Me too," Hiccup replied. For just a moment they stood there just gazing at each other, both seemingly at a loss for words. She suddenly looked around the area curiously.</p><p>"Hey, where are yer friends," she questioned as she turned back to him.</p><p>"Oh, uh, they are back at camp," Hiccup replied as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. Merida smiled up at him.</p><p>"Well let's go," Merida replied as she turned back to Angus, "I'm anxious to meet them...and their dragons!" Hiccup grabbed her hand to stop her. She turned to him with a curious expression on her face.</p><p>"Uh...yeah...a-about that," Hiccup replied as he gazed at her nervously, "see uh the thing is I was planning...well I mean I...I was hoping...that maybe you and I could spend some time together...uh as in, uh just the two of us." Merida furrowed her brow slightly as he spoke. Hiccup could feel his heart racing in nervousness. He blushed slightly under the weight of her curious gaze.</p><p>"Uh-uh I mean i-it's not that I-I don't want you to meet the others, b-because I-I do," Hiccup continued to stutter nervously, "it-it's just that, well I haven't seen you in days and I...I just thought w-we could catch up first. Uh i-if that's okay with you I mean." Merida smiled warmly up at him.</p><p>"Of course," she replied. He smiled warmly in her direction.</p><p>"Great," he grinned as he pulled her forward, "let's go." Merida laughed as she stumbled forward.</p><p>"Where are we going," she questioned as she headed in Angus' direction. Hiccup quickly mounted Toothless.</p><p>"I sort of found this great new spot that I want to show you," he replied, "me and Toothless stumbled upon it while we were exploring the other day."</p><p>"Ye know Hiccup," she smirked as she mounted Angus once again, "I spent a great deal of time in these woods, there aren't many hidden spots that I don't already know about."</p><p>"Okay, so maybe it's not a 'new' spot," Hiccup replied, "but it's still a great one, and now it will only be even better because you'll be there with me." To this Merida chuckled.</p><p>"Oh, is that so," she laughed. Hiccup's heart nearly leapt at the lovely sound. How he had missed her beautiful laugh.</p><p>When they arrived at the glen, Hiccup quickly dismounted Toothless and headed over to Angus. He smiled up at Merida and offered her his hand. She smiled down at him as she slipped her hand in his and jumped down from the great horse.</p><p>"Ready," he questioned. Merida nodded as she smiled up at him. With her hand in his, Hiccup carefully led her down to the stony shore, trying to avoid the slippery moss-covered rocks.</p><p>"Well, what do you think," Hiccup questioned. Merida smiled at the sight before them. Though it was a place she knew well, she had not been there in years and she had forgotten just how beautiful the place was. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly as she took in the scenery.</p><p>"It's beautiful," she replied.</p><p>"I don't know what it is about Dunbroch," Hiccup sighed as he glanced in her direction for a moment, "it just seems so...magical." Merida turned and smiled up at him causing his heart to flutter.</p><p>"Aye," she replied as she glanced up at him, "and this place especially." Hiccup turned to her in interest.</p><p>"This place is called the Gleann Sìth," she explained, "or Fae Glen. It's said that this glen is home to the fair folk." Hiccup furrowed his brow at her in curiosity.</p><p>"Wee people," she reiterated. Hiccup continued to gaze at her in slight confusion. She sighed as she stood on her toes to reach his ear.</p><p>"Fairies," she whispered. He felt the warmth of her breath as she whispered to him and it caused him to blush slightly.</p><p>"Oh, Fair...," Hiccup attempted to repeat what she had whispered but she quickly covered his mouth with her hand to stop him. Hiccup gazed at her in befuddlement.</p><p>"Ye can't call them that in their home," she replied, "it's bad luck. They prefer to be called fair folk." She raised an eyebrow at him and smiled mischievously. Hiccup gazed back at her in slight amusement.</p><p>"Well, I will be sure to remember that," he replied, "as we really could use as much good luck as we can possibly get."</p><p>"Aye tis true," Merida chuckled lightly. He turned his eyes back to the beautiful water fall that cascaded over the large basalt rocks and emptied into the and pristine pool below it. The pool and adjoining creek were framed by moss covered rocks and lush greenery. It seemed the canopy above them was thinned out over the water allowing just the right amount of sunlight to trickle through and light up the glen. The sunlight highlighted the deep green of the forest and the crystal-clear water giving it an almost dream-like appearance. It certainly looked like a place where fairies might reside.</p><p>"Come on Hiccup," Merida said as she reached for his hand and pulled him forward, "if ye want to spend some time here, we have to ask permission."</p><p>"Permission," Hiccup questioned, "from the fairi...I mean fair folk?"</p><p>"Aye," she replied with a playful smile upon her face. Hiccup's heart melted at the sight. He simply allowed her to lead him. They stopped before a giant oak tree. At the base of the tree there was an array of items, from bits of food to hand made trinkets and wood carvings. And even a few pieces of jewelry. Merida knelt down before the tree as Hiccup watched curiously. Merida looked up at him and smirked.</p><p>"Ye too," she replied as she grabbed his hand and pulled him down to his knees beside her. Hiccup just chuckled under his breath.</p><p>"Okay, Okay," he replied. Merida reached into her bag and pulled out a sweet roll. She broke it in two and gave half to Hiccup.</p><p>"Noble fair folk and keepers of this glen," Merida said, "we bring ye a gift in exchange for spending some time on yer land. We promise to be respectful of yer home." With that she placed the bit of sweet roll and the base of the tree. Hiccup leaned forward and place his half beside hers. Merida looked up at him and smiled warmly. He found himself at a loss for words. All he could think about was how much he missed her and how amazing it felt just to be in her presence.</p><p>"I thought you didn't believe in this sort of thing princess," Hiccup said.</p><p>"What sort of thing is it yer talking about," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Ya know, trolls, sprites...," he leaned close to her ear and whispered, "fairies." Merida felt her heart flutter slightly.</p><p>"I ne'er said I didn't believe," Merida replied, "I'm just not convinced that having a terrible name has the power to ward of trolls." Hiccup snickered at her answer.</p><p>"Are you suggesting that I've been cursed with the name Hiccup for no reason," he replied in mock offense.</p><p>"I would ne'er say such a thing," Merida replied, "I like yer name."</p><p>"Oh, you do huh," Hiccup questioned skeptically.</p><p>"It's different," she replied as she smiled up at him, "besides, it doesn't really matter whether ye have a terrible name or not. Tis the man that makes the name. To me, Hiccup is noble, brave, and kind and anyone named for him has a lot to live up to." Hiccup smiled warmly at her. He didn't know how but she always managed to render him speechless with her heartfelt words. Without a word Merida stood from her place and offered him her hand. He looked up at her and grinned.</p><p>"Come on," she said, "we can go explore now." Hiccup stood quickly then took her hand and followed after her. They headed back over to the edge of the pond.</p><p>"So," Hiccup sighed," how have things been at home, any improvement with your mom?" Merida looked up at him and smiled.</p><p>"Aye, as a matter of fact," Merida replied, "This morn' before I left, we made amends. She even gave me her blessing to search the archives all I want for proof of Berk's innocence."</p><p>"That's great," Hiccup replied with a smile, "see it's only a matter of time before we win her over."</p><p>"Aye, although, she did seem just a bit off this morn," Merida replied distantly as she thought back to her mother's odd demeanor.</p><p>"What do you mean," Hiccup asked curiously.</p><p>"I don't know exactly," Merida replied, "she just seemed distracted, as if there was something weighing on her mind. She said there was something she needed to tell me...but then she...well she just didn't." Hiccup furrowed his brow as he thought over what she had said.</p><p>"I wouldn't worry about it too much," Hiccup replied, "I'm sure if it's important she will tell you when she's ready."</p><p>"I guess yer right," Merida replied with a sigh. She turned to him and smiled.</p><p>"And how have things been between ye and Eret," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Surprisingly good," Hiccup replied, "believe it or not." Merida smiled at his answer.</p><p>"I'm glad," Merida replied. Hiccup smiled at her.</p><p>"Ya know," he replied, "you are a lot of the reason that things are good between me and Eret. If you hadn't knocked sense into me that night, I probably wouldn't have ever forgiven him."</p><p>"Well, I'm glad what I said helped," Merida replied, "it was hard to see ye in such a state, ye know. Ye really had me worried." They both sat down upon a large rock beside the edge of the pond. "Mostly I was afraid that ye would ne'er let go o' yer past...that ye would never see..." She stopped herself mid-sentence in fear she would say too much. Hiccup furrowed his brow curiously.</p><p>"That I would never see what," he questioned. Merida looked up at him in uncertainty.</p><p>"Uh I meant ...that ye wouldn't forgive Eret and Astrid," Merida replied quickly. Hiccup nodded and averted his eyes as he pondered her answer. When Hiccup turned his eyes back to her, she could see his eyes were full of remorse and all she wanted to do was comfort him. Without a word Merida reached out and took his hand gently in hers.</p><p>"I'm really sorry that I worried you," Hiccup replied, "it wasn't my intention." Merida squeezed his hand in reassurance.</p><p>"Ye don't need to apologize Hiccup," Merida replied, "sometimes ye just need to talk things out to see them clearer. I mean, that's what friends are for and I was happy to oblige."</p><p>"And it was much appreciated," Hiccup replied sincerely, "I can't even begin to tell you just how much your words of advice have meant to me."</p><p>"I feel the same about ye," Merida replied as she smiled up at him warmly, "I meant what I said, ye are my truest friend. In your last letter ye said that our friendship is worth fighting for, and that ye would do everything ye could to protect it. I can honestly say that no one has ever been so devoted to me, not without wanting something anyway, I mean certainly not without thought of themselves." She dropped her eyes to the ground as she seemed to become lost in thought. Hiccup smiled warmly in her direction.</p><p>"I was just being honest," Hiccup replied, "I...I care about you Merida...To me,  you are worth fighting for." Merida lifted her eyes to him and smiled warmly as he squeezed her hand gently in his. "I will always fight for you," Hiccup said.</p><p>"And I for you," Merida replied softly. Hiccup could feel his heart racing as he gazed at her. He found himself speechless and try as he might he couldn't form his racing thoughts into words. He hesitated as he tried to get his thoughts straight.</p><p>"There is something I want to ask ye," Merida said.</p><p>"Uh...sure," Hiccup replied nervously, "what is it?"</p><p>"The other night...uh...the night ye came to my balcony," Merida said nervously, "ye were going to tell me something just before mum interrupted...what were ye going to say." Hiccup was caught off guard by her question and he found himself scrambling to answer.</p><p>"Uh, ya know, uh, it was just, uh...well, I mean," he blushed slightly, "It was just uh, pretty much what I just told you...that y-you're my friend and I care about you." Merida nodded and dropped her eyes from his as she seemed to carefully consider his answer. Hiccup mentally kicked himself for once again putting his foot in his mouth as a result of his nervousness.</p><p>"So, you mentioned something about your brothers helping you out with our mystery," Hiccup said as he quickly changed the subject.</p><p>"Aye, I almost forgot," Merida replied, "well, first thing's first, I have been searching the archive and the library for something, anything regarding yer tribe and also the name ye told me, Adag nearly the entire time I've been grounded."</p><p>"And," Hiccup questioned in anticipation.</p><p>"And, I haven't had a scrap o' luck whatsoever," Merida said flatly. Hiccup's shoulders dropped in slight disappointment.</p><p>"Aye," that's how I felt too," Merida replied, "but I was certain that I heard that name before. I wasn't sure if it was from a story I heard or something else. It sounded so familiar but I couldn't quite place it." Hiccup nodded as he listened.</p><p>"I even double checked the library hoping I'd maybe find it in one of the stories my mum used to tell me, but I couldn't find a thing. I was just about ready to give up," Merida went on, "that is, until the other day, when I ran into my brothers in the library. They offered to help me find what I was looking for. So, I accepted and told them I thought I remembered Adag from a story maybe."</p><p>"Did they find something," Hiccup asked.</p><p>"No," Merida replied with a knowing smile, "they did nae have to look at all, they already knew what it was." Hiccup raised his eyebrows in surprise.</p><p>"Apparently it's an old Gaelic word," Merida replied.</p><p>"Gaelic," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye, it's our ancient language," Merida replied, "much like Old Norse is to yer people. I must have vaguely remembered hearing it before in my lessons."</p><p>"Okay," Hiccup replied, "so what does it mean?"</p><p>"Here is where it gets interesting," Merida smiled, "Adag is actually the name of a type of a fish." Hiccup furrowed his brow in slight confusion. Merida chuckled slightly.</p><p>"It means Haddock," Merida exclaimed. Hiccup's eyes went wide in surprise.</p><p>"So, you're saying that Adag is the Gaelic word for...Haddock," he questioned in disbelief.</p><p>"Aye it is," Merida replied with a grin.</p><p>"What do ya know, Eret was right," Hiccup muttered, "well sort of anyway." He turned to see Merida's questioning gaze.</p><p>"See, Eret suggested that Adag was another word for Berk maybe," Hiccup replied, "because there were so many references to the banishment in what Mairead had said that it sort of made sense."</p><p>"Well, he certainly wasn't far off," Merida replied.</p><p>"No, he wasn't" Hiccup agreed.</p><p>"So, I went through what you said in your letter again," Merida replied, "But this time I used Haddock in place of Adag. So, the house of Haddock is lost. Exiled and forgotten. It is said a Haddock will lead them home but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond." She looked to him anxiously awaiting his response. Hiccup, stood for a long moment silent going over everything Merida had said.</p><p>"Don't ye see," Merida explained, "Mairead was speaking of the house of Haddock, which can only mean yer family line! Everything Mairead said was in reference to yer family and maybe even ye specifically."</p><p>"Me specifically," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye, think about it Hiccup," Merida replied, "Ye are the first Haddock to set foot in Dunbroch in over three hundred years! Ye must be the Haddock she spoke of. Ye are the Haddock that will lead them home! And the link forged by both clans, must be the friendship between ye and I!" Hiccup silently thought over the words from his dream as Merida spoke, in particular the last line, which he had inadvertently omitted from the letter he wrote to her.</p><p>"The house of Haddock will rise," Hiccup mumbled to himself, "and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable...for the link that binds them was forged...in love."</p><p>He could feel his heart begin to race as he gazed back at her in semi-realization. If the words were specifically about him, if he was the one meant to renew the bond between the clans, perhaps the last part was literal as well. Maybe the link forged between their clans really was about he and Merida. Maybe his thoughts from yesterday were more accurate than he realized. The 'link forged in love' could be the love he was beginning to feel for Merida which seemed to be growing stronger every day. He turned to her and smiled.</p><p>"What did ye just say," Merida asked.</p><p>"Uh...well...I...uh," Hiccup stuttered, "t-there may have been a little more to what Mairead said than that. I...I mean I may have left some of it out when I wrote my letter." Merida gazed at him in sudden intrigue.</p><p>"Well, what else did she say Hiccup," Merida questioned. Hiccup gazed back at her nervously.</p><p>"Uh...she said, the house of Haddock will rise," Hiccup replied as he gazed at her, "and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable...for the link that binds them was forged...in love." Merida furrowed her brow as she thought over this new bit of information. Hiccup gazed at her anxiously hoping that she might come to the same conclusion that he had.</p><p>"She must be referring to the love between herself and yer grandfather," Merida replied, "but how would that renew the bond between the clans now?" Hiccup sighed in slight disappointment.</p><p>"Unless maybe," she paused a moment and gazed up at Hiccup, "there is more to it than that." Hiccup smiled at her in hopeful anticipation.</p><p>"Aye, there is something I have not told ye as well," Merida replied. Hiccup gazed at her curiously.</p><p>"As I said before," Merida continued, "I've spent near my whole grounding searchin' the archives and still there is nothin' to be found. It's gettin' a wee bit frustrating." Hiccup nodded his head.</p><p>"Well, on the bright side," Hiccup replied, "if I meet your parents and they approve of my being here...then at least I will be able to help you look."</p><p>"That's the thing," Merida replied, "I don't think there is anything to find. It seems almost as if the entire portion of history between the time that yer clan came to the time after they were banished is just...missing."</p><p>"Missing," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye, I'm beginning to wonder if it was not done purposely," Merida replied, "I mean the affair between our grandparents was surely a scandal."</p><p>"And you think the records were hidden or destroyed to cover it up," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "I'm definitely beginning to think so. But it occurred to me...there must be something more to the story. It just seems strange to erase a whole portion of history...just to cover up their brief romance." Hiccup pondered her hypothesis.</p><p>"Okay well," Hiccup replied, "like I told you in my letter, even if we can't find the proof of Berk's innocence, then I will just have to earn Dunbroch's trust on my own merits."</p><p>"That's all well and good Hiccup," she replied, "and I have no doubt ye will prove yer worth, but I fear we have a bigger mystery on our hands than we realize." Hiccup furrowed his brow as he gazed back at her.</p><p>"What do you mean," he questioned.</p><p>"Like me, my dad also believes that Berk was innocent, but he could never find any proof either," Merida went on, "just this morn' as I spoke to my Dad about my search, he proceeded to tell me that it was a shame that Berk could never clear their name as they had been completely wiped out by dragons not long after they left Dunbroch." Hiccup shook his head in confusion.</p><p>"Wait...what," Hiccup questioned.</p><p>"He told me that the entire clan of Berkan Vikings were killed in a single dragon raid shortly after they returned to Berk," Merida replied, "and the story of Berk's demise is well known and recorded in the archive."</p><p>"But that's not true," Hiccup replied, "I mean obviously that's not true. They really believe that Berk was wiped out?"</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "and then it occurred to me, why is the story of Berk's demise well recorded in the archive, but there is nothing to be found of their time in Dunbroch?"</p><p>"That is odd," Hiccup agreed.</p><p>"I can't help but wonder if Mairead lived her whole life believing that her true love was dead," Merida replied, "I mean, it's utterly heartbreaking. I tried to think...who would have told her such a terrible lie? I mean why go to such lengths, unless they had something to lose."</p><p>"Something like the crown of Dunbroch," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Exactly," Merida replied, "If I were in Mairead's shoes, and I was being forced to wed someone I didn't love, while the one I love was wrongly banished, I would fight tooth and nail to prove it and I would do whatever I could to appeal to my parents and the Lords to change their minds. I can only imagine that Mairead would have done the same."</p><p>"But if she believed he was dead," Hiccup went on, "then there was no reason to fight."</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "she'd have simply given up because of her broken heart. Now, I keep thinking of who would want to hurt her in such a terrible way. There is only one person I can think of that would want to get rid of Hiccup, and stop Mairead from protesting the arranged marriage, the one person who had the most to lose."</p><p>"Your great, great grandfather," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied, "my great, great grandfather, Lord Callum the third."</p><p>Hiccup silently contemplated all that Merida had said. He thought back to his own search back in Berk. He could find no evidence whatsoever, save what was hidden in the false bottom of his grandfather's chest. He remembered wondering why his grandfather would hide the items. Could someone in Berk have been doing the same thing to Hiccup I as Callum had allegedly done to Mairead? He shook his head as he thought about it. That couldn't have been the case as his grandfather himself had hidden the items in the chest. But that would mean that Hiccup the first knew about the cover up and intentionally went along with it. What he didn't understand was why his grandfather would even think of going along with such a lie? Why would he not fight for the woman he loved? Unless of course he stayed away to protect Mairead. Maybe Calum had threatened to hurt her if he didn't comply. One thing was for certain, the mystery had certainly taken an interesting turn and Hiccup thought they were quite close to discovering the truth.</p><p>"Unfortunately," Merida continued, "this means that the only evidence that exits as far as I know, is my nana's journal and yer grandfather's journal and sketchbook. If we can't find the answers there, I fear we never will."</p><p>"This is certainly getting more interesting by the minute," Hiccup replied. He paused a moment as he continued to ponder this new information. He turned her suddenly with a look of determination on his face.</p><p>"Merida," he replied, "do you happen to have the journal on you, right now?"</p><p>"Aye," she replied as she pulled the old book from her bag and handed it over to him.</p><p>"If you don't mind," Hiccup replied, "I'm going to read through it and see if there are any details we missed. Maybe something that didn't stand out to us before, will make more sense to us knowing what we know now." Merida nodded in agreement.<br/>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>Dunbroch castle</p><p>Elinor quickly made her way to the study in hopes to find Fergus there. When she entered and found him sitting at his writing table going over some matters of business with his advisors she sighed in relief.</p><p>"Fergus," she called out, "I must speak with ye." Fergus looked up at his wife curiously. He could plainly see the look of concern on her face.</p><p>"Aye, alright dear," he turned to his advisors, "um that's enough business for the day gentlemen...as ye can see I have other matters to attend to. He waited until his advisors left the room, then turned to his wife in concern.</p><p>"Aye, dear," he replied, "what is this all about then?" Elinor held up a letter in her hand and handed it quickly over to Fergus. Fergus took the letter and started to read it.</p><p>"It's the Lords," Elinor replied, "since we've agreed for their sons to come to court Merida, they want to move forward right away. The say they will be here in a week's time." After Fergus finished reading, he folded the letter and looked up at his wife.</p><p>"I thought we'd have more time than this to prepare," Fergus replied.</p><p>"Aye," Elinor replied, "I hoped so to, but ye forget, the Lords have been patiently waiting for a choice to be made these past five years. I fear their patience has run out."</p><p>"Well," Fergus sighed, "I'm afraid we have no choice at this point, we need to prepare for their arrival. But more importantly, we need to tell Merida right away." Elinor shook her head as she thought over Fergus' words. Fergus stood quickly and pulled his wife into his arms. He held her close as he tried to reassure her.</p><p>"She will ne'er understand," Elinor replied, "and she will ne'er forgive us."</p><p>"Don't underestimate her dear," Fergus replied, "I'm sure once we explain she will understand. As I said before, we are not taking her freedom from her, we are merely entertaining the Lords."</p><p>"You're right," Elinor sighed, "I just need to explain it clearly to her, I need to make her understand." Fergus smiled at his wife.</p><p>"Aye, she is a strong young lady now," Fergus replied, "practically ready to take the throne...ye need to trust that she will understand."<br/>
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Hiccup sat leaned back against the trunk of a tree with legs crossed, reading the journal of Merida's grandmother. He had spent the past two hours trying to find any evidence or detail that could help them figure out the truth, or at least any other clues. He even tried to find any more evidence of whatever spell their great, great grandparents had attempted to cast. So far, he'd only found stories of their ill-fated love affair. As he flipped through the journal a folded piece of paper fell from between the pages and landed in his lap. He unfolded it to discover a letter written by his great, great grandfather.</p><p>...</p><p>My dearest Mairead,</p><p>I told you how I feel, and I know that you are afraid, but I beg you to reconsider. You say that it's too late, that you are promised to another and you're fate has already been written. But fate is not the arrangements made for us. Fate does not care about station, or caste or political gain. Fate does not consider the plans made by men. True fate is found where the heart leads and my heart only leads me to you. True fate is written in the stars above. I know in my heart the you are my fate. But if by some chance I am wrong, if my fate is not to love you then I would rewrite the stars themselves to be with you. You claim our love is not in the cards, and fate is pulling you miles away and out of reach from me. But you're here in my heart so who can stop me if I decide that you are my destiny. What if we re-write the stars, and say you were made to be mine? Then nothing could keep us apart, because you are the one, I was meant to find. It should be up to you and up to me, and no one else should be allowed to say what we get to be. If I choose you and you choose me then we can rewrite the stars. We could build a life that is only ours. If you'll have me, I would be yours eternally. I await your answer at the standing stones.</p><p>Love always, H.</p><p>...</p><p>Hiccup felt his great, great grandfather's words deeply as he read them, almost as if he had written them himself. He could nearly feel his great, great grandfather's love and longing for Mairead in the heartfelt words he had written to his one true love. It seemed that he and Mairead were being torn between the paths set before them and the one that led to each other. It was evident to Hiccup that his great, great grandfather had been fighting against fate itself to keep Mairead with him. As he folded the letter carefully and stuffed it back in its place, a wave of emotions ran through his heart and soul. His mind drifted to his own growing feelings for Merida. The irony was not lost on him that Merida just so happened to be the great, great granddaughter of the woman for whom the letter was written.</p><p>He took a deep breath as he thought of Merida. It seemed the discovery she had made in regards to their grandparent's mystery had distracted him from his motive for bringing her to this glen in the first place. He had jumped right into trying to find the answers to their mystery and had lost focus on what he had planned to tell her. He sighed heavily as he closed the journal and tried to think of a good way to bring it up.</p><p>He was distracted suddenly by a large splash, and the distinct sound of Toothless grunting and Merida laughing. The sound of her laughter made his breath catch in his throat and his heart flutter. He looked up and glanced over in the direction of the pool of water but the two could not be seen from where he sat. He gently set the book down beside him. He stood from his place stretched his arms over his head for a moment, and then headed in the direction of the noise. He stopped at the edge of the pond to see Toothless rolling playfully around in the water. Hiccup's eyes came to rest on Merida. With her bow in hand, she stood close by atop a stone that protruded through the water's surface. He smiled slightly as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his back against a nearby tree to watch.</p><p>The very sight of her was breathtaking. She stood in the sunlight concentrating on the water keeping her sight in line with her arrow, her deep red hair was nearly aglow with sunlight, and her blue eyes sparkled. He could feel his heart beating wildly as he watched her. The vision of her was almost ethereal and he was inadvertently reminded of the stories of the Valkyrie that his father told him as a young boy.</p><p>The Valkyrie were the angels of the dead tasked to carry the fallen home to Valhalla. They were said to be formidable shield maidens whose beauty was matched by none on earth. There were stories of Viking warriors so enamored by the Valkyries beauty that they vowed to fight till their deaths in hopes to join them.</p><p>As he gazed longingly upon Merida, the words from one of his father's stories echoed through his mind.</p><p>...</p><p>'Behold the Valkyrie came upon the battlefield. Hair aflame like the fire of a dragon's breath, eyes as blue as the heavens themselves and shining as the stars above and wings of gold. They come to collect the souls of the warriors. Their beauty unmatched bringth such peace upon the hearts of the fallen, that they willingly follow through the gates of Valhalla.'</p><p>...</p><p>As a boy he couldn't imagine that such beauty could exist, that a man would be willing to die for his enamored love. He wondered if how he felt now watching her could compare.</p><p>"Toothless ye oaf," Merida chuckled as the dragon continued to bat at the water, "stop scaring the fish away." Toothless whined as he turned his head to the side.</p><p>"Toothless sit," Merida said firmly, "stay."</p><p>Hiccup smiled as he watched. Merida notched an arrow and aimed her bow toward the water. For a few minutes she stood still, watching carefully, with a look of complete concentration on her face. Then at the right moment she released the arrow. She stepped forward and reached for the arrow where it stuck out from the water. She lifted it to reveal a large salmon.</p><p>"There ye see," Merida smiled proudly, "ye just need to be a wee bit more patient." She pulled the arrow from the fish and tossed the fish to Toothless. Toothless happily caught it in his mouth and scampered off as Merida laughed out loud.</p><p>"You know you just earned yourself a friend for life," Hiccup called out. Merida turned to him with a bright smile. 'A smile that could melt a man's heart,' he thought to himself.</p><p>"Nice shot by the way," he said. Merida nodded.</p><p>"I hope ye mean I made two friends for life," Merida replied with a raised eyebrow. Hiccup grinned at her as he stepped closer to the edge of the pool.</p><p>"That goes without saying princess," Hiccup replied with a smirk, "you've already won me over with apples." Merida slung her bow over her shoulder. She then began to hop across the stones that stuck up from the river bed as she headed in the direction of the shore.</p><p>"So," she sighed, as she brushed the hair from her face, "did you find anything interesting?"</p><p>"Well, unfortunately, there was nothing about the banishment, or the spell," Hiccup shrugged, "and nothing suggesting your hypothesis either. But as it turns out the standing stones were pretty significant to them."</p><p>"Really," Merida questioned curiously, "how so?"</p><p>"Well, there are quite a few reasons actually," Hiccup replied as he glanced up at her, "first, it's the place where they would often secretly meet."</p><p>Merida nodded as she listened. Hiccup smiled slightly as he continued.</p><p>"It's also where they first confessed their feelings for each other." Hiccup paused a moment as he averted his eyes. "It's...uh...it's where they shared their first kiss," he gulped as he looked up at her briefly, "ya know, uh it was a pretty special place for them both."</p><p>"So," she smiled up at him, "that, in addition to the stones being sacred ground..."</p><p>"Probably made it ideal for whatever spell they did," Hiccup replied, "I just wish we could find more though."</p><p>"Aye," Merida replied with a slight frown, "it is a bit of setback, but we are getting closer to the truth every day, I can feel it in my bones." He glanced up at her once more and smiled slightly. He averted his eyes and cleared his throat.</p><p>"Uh...ya know, I uh...I found something else too," Hiccup replied.</p><p>"What," Merida questioned.</p><p>"Well, uh I found this letter," Hiccup replied, "more like a...a love letter, I guess, uh from Hiccup to Mairead. It was stuffed inside the back cover."</p><p>"A love letter," Merida questioned in intrigue, "I never saw that before...w-what does it say?" Merida quickly headed in his direction, hopping upon the stones in the pool. As she got closer to him, she suddenly slipped on a moss-covered rock. She yelped as she fell back into the water with a large splash.</p><p>"Whoa, are you okay," Hiccup laughed. Merida sat up and smirked up at him.</p><p>"Aye," she said flatly, "what's so funny!" Hiccup continued to laugh as he headed in her direction.</p><p>"I'm sorry," he chuckled, "I couldn't help it, your face was priceless!" He reached a hand out to her to help her out.</p><p>"You know," he smirked, "if you keep this up, I may start to think you're falling for me." She smirked back at him at his cheesy pun. She reached up and grabbed a hold of his hand, but as he tried to pull her up, she pulled him toward her and he tumbled forward into the water. He sat up quickly in surprise as he pushed his dripping wet hair back from his face and spit water from his mouth. Merida covered her mouth to stifle a laugh.</p><p>"What the hell, Merida," he groaned. She began to laugh hysterically unable to contain it any longer.</p><p>"Looks like ye are the one falling for me," she said amidst her laughter. He smirked back at her. Thinking quickly, he then pushed the water with his palm sending a torrent of it back in her face. In her surprise, she stopped laughing for a moment. She coughed a few times as she wiped the water from her face and glared at him.</p><p>"Who's laughing now," Hiccup teased. She kept a serious look on her face as she stood in the waist deep water and trudged past him.</p><p>"Oh, what you can dish it out but ya can't take it princess," he teased.</p><p>She silently lifted the bow from her shoulder, then took the quiver from her hip and tossed them upon the shore to dry. She then turned toward him with arms crossed and glared down at him with an eyebrow raised.</p><p>"Oh I can take it," she smirked, "can ye?"</p><p>She bent down and splashed the water in his direction, sending it back in his face once again as she laughed.</p><p>"Oh, it's on," Hiccup growled with a smirk on his face. Merida screamed out and ran past him as he splashed her back. He quickly jumped to his feet and trudged after her. Just as they reached the shallower end of the pool Merida paused and turned to kick water back at him once again, but he was closer than she had anticipated and she accidentally kicked him in the leg.</p><p>Hiccup groaned and bent forward in pain.</p><p>"Oh Hiccup," Merida exclaimed in concern, "I...I didn't mean to...it was an accident!" She quickly turned back and headed over toward him in concern. She bent down to see if she could help. As soon as she was close to him, he splashed water in her face and then stood up laughing.</p><p>"Hiccup," she yelled in aggravation. He just continued laughing.</p><p>"It's not funny," she cried out as she stood up straight, "I thought I really hurt ye!"</p><p>"The benefits of having a metal leg," Hiccup laughed. Merida stormed over to him.</p><p>"What's wrong with ye," she yelled in aggravation. She pushed him angrily causing him to tumble back into the water. She then stormed toward the shore.</p><p>"Oh no you don't," Hiccup cried out. He lunged forward and grabbed her by the waist but he quickly lost his balance and the two of them tumbled back into the water once again. Merida sat up quickly gasping for air.</p><p>"Hiccup," she fumed as she glared at him from beneath her wet hair, "Ye glaikit Viking, ah ought tae beat ye wi' yer metal shank!" Hiccup chuckled as he looked at her in both surprise and confusion.</p><p>"What did you just say," he asked in confusion.</p><p>"Ah said ah ought tae beat ye wi' yer metal shank ye eejit!" Hiccup laughed out loud. Merida huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest in frustration.</p><p>He leaned over to her and gently brushed the wet hair from her face, revealing her flushed cheeks and beautiful sky-blue eyes. Once again, struck by her beauty, he gazed at her longingly. Merida scowled back at him, causing him to chuckle. She stood up quickly once more and stormed away from him. She sat down upon the stony shore and huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest once more.</p><p>"What," he asked with a grin, "you started it!" Hiccup stood and trudged after her. He plopped down beside her on the stony shore and purposely pushed his shoulder into her playfully. She smirked and nudged him back. They glanced at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter.</p><p>"I'm sorry," he said, "it was just a stupid joke, I didn't think it would upset you." Merida sighed heavily as she rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Yer forgiven," Merida replied, "I'm just glad I didn't actually hurt ye." She looked up at him and giggled. He furrowed his brow in both curiosity and amusement.</p><p>"What," he smiled.</p><p>"Ye have something..." she said, still giggling. He looked at her in confusion. She leaned toward him, then reached up and gently pulled a piece of green moss from his wet hair. The feel of her delicate fingers running through his hair sent shivers down his spine and he unwittingly leaned a little closer to her. He smiled warmly as he gazed into her amazing blue eyes. Merida gazed back at him nervously. She could feel her stomach doing flip flops as he gazed back at her with such an intense look of longing in his eyes.</p><p>"I...I can see it, ya know," he said softly.</p><p>"What's that," she asked nervously.</p><p>"What he saw in her," Hiccup replied. Merida furrowed her brow in slight confusion.</p><p>"What do ye mean," she questioned.</p><p>"Uh...M-Mairead," Hiccup explained, "uh, I just mean i-if she was anything like y-you; I can definitely see why my great, great grandfather fell for her."</p><p>Merida smiled shyly, as a small blush formed on her cheeks, causing Hiccup's heart to flutter. Hiccup smiled slightly as he leaned a little closer to her. With little thought, he reached up and gently brushed a few more loose strands of her wet hair away from her beautiful face. Merida gazed back at him as she nervously bit her bottom lip unsure of what Hiccup was trying to say. Without thought, the two leaned closer still; her blue eyes transfixed on his green ones. Her mind inadvertently flashed back to the Viking in her dream, who had looked at her in much the same way that Hiccup was looking at her now. She could feel her heart beginning to race.</p><p>"Y-yer eyes," Merida stuttered, "they remind me of his..." Hiccup furrowed his brow at her comment.</p><p>"Who," he asked curiously.</p><p>"The Viking in my dream," she replied, "yer's are not as sad but they are just as green and just as intense and...and looking into them, makes me just as nervous." She quickly averted her eyes and turned away from him. Hiccup placed his hand on her cheek and gently turned her head to face him once again. She shivered slightly at his touch but kept her eyes averted from his gaze.</p><p>"Merida," he said softly, "look at me." Reluctantly she turned her gaze back to his. He dropped his hand from her face and gently took her hands in his.</p><p>"Why does it make you nervous," he asked softly. Merida shrugged.</p><p>"It's...it's the way that ye look at me," she replied, "it's the same way he looked at me in my dream when he thought I was Mairead." Hiccup grinned slightly.</p><p>'So, she had noticed', he thought to himself.</p><p>"I-It's the same way yer looking at me now," Merida whispered, "it...it makes my h-heart race and my mind gets all jumbled." He kept his eyes focused on hers as he leaned close enough that they were only a few inches apart.</p><p>"I-I know how you feel," he whispered. She looked up at him curiously.</p><p>"Ye do," she questioned in uncertainty. Hiccup nodded. He lifted his hand and once again gently brushed the red curls from her face.</p><p>"It's the same way that I feel," he replied nervously as his hand came to rest upon her soft pale cheek, "when I look into yours." He slowly leaned forward pressing his lips gently to hers in a chaste kiss. Her lips were soft and warm and in some strange way familiar. The way he felt the moment their lips met, could only be likened to how he felt when the woman in his dream touched his hand. It was like lighting striking his heart, familiar and new all at once. Hiccup's heart felt as if it might burst from his chest and his thoughts became suddenly clear. In that moment he knew with certainty, that somehow, some way they would be together and he was willing to do anything to make that happen.</p><p>Merida pulled back suddenly and gazed at him in surprise as she covered her lips with her hand. She stood quickly and turned away from him as she tried to make sense of what had just happened between them.</p><p>"I...I'm sorry," he jumped up immediately and followed after her. He reached for her arm and gently pulled her back to face him. As he looked into her eyes once more, he could see her confusion and trepidation and he felt suddenly self-conscious.</p><p>"I...I shouldn't have done that I...I didn't mean to." She felt her heart flinch at his words. She dropped her eyes from his and began to turn away from him again.</p><p>"N-no... uh, w-wait...uh, th-that's not what I meant," he stuttered as he scrambled to right his words. She started to walk away but he practically leapt in front of her to stop her.</p><p>"No, no, no...wait,...I...I d-did...I did mean it," he said quickly, "I mean, I...I wanted to kiss you, but I...I shouldn't have..." He dropped his eyes to the ground for a moment as he took a deep breath in an attempt to clear his jumbled thoughts. He turned his gaze back to her.</p><p>"It's just, y-you're amazing," Hiccup went on, "a-and beautiful, and smart, and fun a-and I...I have these feelings for you" Merida just gazed up at him in uncertainty. He gently took her hands in his once more. He took a deep breath as he tried to muster up his courage.</p><p>"Merida, I...I care about you," Hiccup replied with a slight smile, "I know it may sound crazy, but I...I feel like I've been drawn to you since the moment we met, and I feel like maybe you and I, m-maybe we could have something, ya know, something good, something real." He gazed at her longingly</p><p>"A-and kissing you," he paused and gazed into her sky-blue eyes, "it...it felt right, but maybe I shouldn't have done it without your consent. I...I'm sorry that I acted without thinking, but it wasn't a mistake, okay. I wanted to kiss you and I..." He paused a moment as he gazed deep into her pale blue eyes, "I want to be with you Merida." She looked up into his eyes once more, unsure of what to do or say. Her heart was beating furiously. Everything he had said to her was all she could have hoped for, but his confession had caught her off guard. It was unexpected and caused her heart to be flooded with uncertainty and panic. As he gazed at her he could see the torrent of emotions in her eyes. He sighed slightly as he tried to decipher what she was feeling. It caused him to feel slightly nervous as he awaited her response but she remained speechless.</p><p>"Please, say something," he pleaded, "do you feel at all how I do?" Merida felt frozen in place, she gazed at him in uncertainty as she tried desperately to sort out her feelings.</p><p>"I...I don't know what to say Hiccup," Merida replied nervously, "It's just that, no one's ever said those things to me before and I've never felt like this before. It's...it's all just so...u-unexpected and...and amazing, a-and terrifying all at once and I...I just don't know what to say." Hiccup's smile slowly faded as he averted his eyes. He sighed softly feeling slightly dejected. He let go of her hands and backed away slightly.</p><p>"I...I'm sorry," Hiccup replied, "it's too soon...I...I shouldn't have said anything...I just...I thought that maybe...I mean...what you said...I just thought that you might feel as I do." Merida could see the disappointment on his face and it caused her heart to lurch. She wanted desperately to say how she felt, but her fear seemed to paralyze her. Hiccup took her lack of words as confirmation that he had clearly misread the situation. He started to turn away from her but she reached out and grabbed his arm to stop him. He looked up at her curiously.</p><p>"I...I do care," Merida replied, "I care about you, but this is all happening so fast...a-and I'm afraid...I mean I...I don't know...uh...I mean, I..." Hiccup immediately pulled her into his arms and held her close for a long moment. After a moment or two he pulled away from her slightly but continued to gaze into her eyes in reassurance.</p><p>"Listen the absolute last thing that I wanna do is mess this up by...by rushing into it, okay," Hiccup replied. Merida nodded as she gazed back at him solemnly. He reached for her hands once more and held them tightly in his.</p><p>"I'm sorry Hiccup," Merida replied as tears started to well up in her eyes. Hiccup reached up and gently caressed her soft cheek, and smiled slightly.</p><p>"It's okay, Merida," Hiccup replied, "you don't have to apologize. Look, I...I told you how I feel, but nothing has to change right now, ok."</p><p>"But Hiccup," she replied, "I...I just..."</p><p>"No, listen Merida," Hiccup smiled, "I'm not trying to pressure you, alright. I can wait, as long as it takes. Even if it takes years for us to figure this all out. I promise, I'm not going anywhere." She nodded as she gazed up at him. He gently lifted her chin and looked deep into her eyes. He could feel his heart pounding as he gazed at her and all he wanted to do was to kiss her again but he respectfully restrained himself. He leaned forward slightly resting his forehead against hers as he gazed at her lovingly.</p><p>"I'm in this," he said softly, "until you tell me otherwise, okay." Merida nodded as she gazed into his deep green eyes, the very eyes that caused her heart to skip. Hiccup gazed back at her with such intensity that it made her shiver and it caused a flood of emotions through her already furiously beating heart.</p><p>Hiccup pulled her to him once more and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Even though her reaction was not what he had hoped it would be, she had still admitted that she cared for him. She had not rejected him really. There was still a chance. Perhaps he had confessed to her too soon, and she wasn't quite ready for such a change in their relationship just yet. Regardless, he had made it crystal clear to her that would never give up on her. He sighed as he held her close. It felt amazing to hold her and he didn't want the moment to end.</p><p>Merida lay her head upon his chest and found herself soothed by the beating of his heart. For the first time in her life, Merida felt as if she were right where she was always meant to be. But her feelings also scared her and as much as she cared about Hiccup, she simply wasn't ready to admit them completely. Hiccup pulled back slightly and grinned down at her.</p><p>"Now can you please explain to me what an eejit is exactly," he asked. Merida just laughed out loud.<br/>
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A little later</p><p>Hiccup set to work on building a fire, so they both could get warm and dry after their water fight. He crouched beside it stoking the flames, all the while thinking about all that had just happened. He had told Merida his true feelings, there was no turning back now. If they were truly meant to be together, he would do whatever it took to make that happen. The only question that remained was if she would consider being with him or not. He felt certain that she felt as he did, but she was just afraid to take that chance so soon. He smiled softly to himself. It didn't matter how long it took; he would wait for her forever if that's what she needed.</p><p>He turned his gaze to Merida who sat across from him with arms wrapped around herself tightly and shivering uncontrollably. He quickly stood and headed over to Toothless' saddle and pulled a blanket from his bag. He came up behind her and gently draped the blanket over her shoulders. She looked up at him and smiled.</p><p>"Thanks," she said softly. He nodded with a smile. Without a word he crouched down in front of her and reached for her shaking hands. He was immediately concerned at how cold they were.</p><p>"Your hands are frozen," he said in concern. Without a second thought he brought her fingers to his lips and gently blew on them with his warm breath. The simple yet affectionate gesture caused her heart to flutter. She smiled shyly at him. After blowing on her hands a few times he gently placed them back on her lap. He realized that her dress was still soaked through. The thick material was taking far longer to dry then his simple tunic.</p><p>"Merida," he said in concern, "you're still sopping wet, no wonder you're freezing."</p><p>"I-I-I'm f-f-fine," she said. He smirked at her.</p><p>"Uh, no you're not," he said firmly, "you need to take that dress off and let it dry!" Merida raised an eyebrow at him. He grinned as his face turned slightly red.</p><p>"Where is your mind princess," he asked suggestively. She glared at him.</p><p>"Okay, look I'm serious," Hiccup replied, "if you don't get warm, you're gonna get sick, and if you don't take off that soaking wet dress you are never going to get warm!"</p><p>"It's not proper," she said defensively.</p><p>"Really," he said with an eyebrow raised, "well, you wanna know what else isn't proper; me allowing you to get pneumonia for the sake of being proper." She crossed her arms over her chest and gazed at him incredulously.</p><p>"Look it's not that big a deal," he replied, "it's not like you're bare, you got what, like twenty layers of undergarments right. And you have this blanket I just gave you."</p><p>"You won't look," Merida questioned.</p><p>"I swear, you have my word," Hiccup chuckled, "okay, I'm gonna go all the way over there and get something for us to eat and you just tell me when your done so I can hang up your dress to dry, okay." She gazed at him uncertainly.</p><p>"What you don't trust my word," Hiccup huffed sarcastically, "after everything we've been through?" She shrugged.</p><p>"Okay," how about this," Hiccup replied, "we'll just have Toothless stand guard okay, does that make you feel better?" She smiled and nodded. Hiccup smiled in amusement. He headed over to Toothless.</p><p>"Hey bud," Hiccup said, "do me a favor and just sit in front of Merida while she changes okay." Toothless nodded and did as he was told.</p><p>"You're all set princess," Hiccup called out as he walked away, "Toothless, you have permission to stop me from peeking...by force if necessary."</p><p>"Ha, ha, very funny," she called out. He chuckled as he turned back around and plucked a few things from the food bag. Merida took off the wet dress quickly revealing the white, linen long-sleeved kirtle underneath. She quickly wrapped the blanket around her shoulders.</p><p>"I'm done," she called out. She gently patted Toothless on the side of his neck.</p><p>"Thanks, Toothless," she said softly. The dragon nodded. She blushed slightly when Hiccup approached.</p><p>"See, that wasn't so bad," Hiccup replied as he took the dress from her.</p><p>"Speak for yourself," Merida replied, "yer not the one standing here in yer underwear."</p><p>Hiccup smirked, "oh...and by underwear, do you mean that full dress that you wear under your dress." Merida rolled her eyes. "Tell me," he said sarcastically as he crossed his arms over his chest and took a step closer to her, "what exactly were you afraid I would see anyway, your ankles?"</p><p>"Maybe," she huffed.</p><p>"And then what," Hiccup smirked sarcastically, "I'd be overcome by lust at the sight of your ankles!"</p><p>"Alright...alright," Merida replied, "ye've made yer point!" He smirked at her.</p><p>"Come on," Hiccup smiled as he took her by the hand, "sit over here by the fire." He led her to a fallen log by the fire. After she sat down, he handed her an apple. Then he took the wet gown and hung it up on a tree branch nearby.He made his way back over to her and sat upon the ground beside her with an apple in his hand. He leaned his back against the log that she sat upon and took a bite of the sweet fruit.</p><p>Merida gazed over at him silently, as she pondered her feelings and the fact that he had admitted to feeling nearly the same as she did. She had tried to distract herself from her growing feelings because she wasn't sure what she felt was real, or just infatuation or maybe even just wishful thinking on her part; but Hiccup's admission had brought all her confusing feelings back to the front of her mind. Her feelings for him were no longer just an idea in her head, they were real and true and he reciprocated them. He felt for her as she did for him. She knew the moment he'd kissed her that she had been falling for him from the start and no other would ever take his place. But his admission also caused her heart to become flooded by all of her previous fears in regards to love. Although she wanted to be with him more than anything, she feared taking a chance with Hiccup only because she feared losing him. There was already so much stacked against them for just being friends, let alone something more. She could not help but to think of their grandparent's plight. Mairead and Hiccup the first were true soulmates, but in the end even that wasn't enough to keep them together. She sighed heavily as she pondered over her many worries. She shivered slightly and pulled the blanket tighter around her. Feeling her shiver beside him, Hiccup turned to her in concern.</p><p>"Are you still cold," he asked. Merida nodded.</p><p>"Come here," he said. He reached for her hand and gently pulled her down to him so they were sitting side by side in front of the fire. He lifted his arm to put around her but he paused.</p><p>"Is this okay," he asked. She smiled shyly as she nodded. He let his arm drape around her shoulders. To his surprise, she did not hesitate to find comfort in his warmth. She leaned into him, resting her head upon his chest and just allowed herself to be wrapped in his warm comforting arms. He smiled softly as he rested his chin upon her soft red curls. He found himself overcome by his feelings for her, and overwhelmed by how right it felt to hold her in his arms.</p><p>He had spent most of his life trying to prove himself, trying to be accepted and even loved. Despite his efforts, he never truly felt that he belonged anywhere, until now. It seemed crazy but with Merida, he felt all those things he'd always longed for. She had so easily accepted him and seen him truly with little effort. Maybe it was because she knew what it felt like to not be seen for who they truly were and to be ridiculed for taking a path different from the ones they were taught. It seemed that apart they each never fit in, but together they fit perfectly.</p><p>Since they met, Hiccup fought his feelings as best he could, he had tried to rationalize them and explain them away to himself, but now he couldn't remember why he had even tried. It was crazy to think that only days ago, he had scoffed at the mere idea of finding love again. Now it was all he could think about. It seemed as if the moment he gave in to his growing feelings and kissed her everything had become startlingly clear. Though he could not rationally explain it, he somehow knew that this was where he belonged, he knew what he wanted, and he knew that he and Merida were somehow meant to be. It was as if his mind had finally realized what his heart already knew from the moment they met. Hiccup was determined now more than ever to follow where his heart seemed to be leading and to do whatever he could to make this work. He wanted to be with her more then anything. Whatever obstacles this path would undoubtedly lead them to, he was ready and willing to face them all if it meant being with her. He tightened his arms around her as he allowed himself to bask in their closeness. He found himself suddenly unable to keep his feelings to himself.</p><p>"I...I probably shouldn't say this so soon," Hiccup said softly, "but I think I might be falling in love with you Merida." His admission was met with silence.</p><p>"Merida," he repeated. She remained quiet and still. He leaned forward slightly to look down on her. She was fast asleep nestled comfortably up against his chest. He smiled lovingly at the peaceful sight of her. He bent down slowly and softly kissed the top of her head. He then leaned back against the log and rested his head upon hers once more.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. All in Due Course</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 21</p><p>Berk</p><p>Astrid sat quietly on the floor of Hiccup’s study, carefully going through the remainder of his grandfather’s belongings. She was determined to find something, anything, that might help Hiccup to discover whatever truth about his grandfather that he sought. She figured the sooner he, Eret and Fish could solve the mystery the sooner they all could leave Dunbroch and come back home. Astrid worried that the longer they remained in Dunbroch, the more likely it would be that they would get caught. She feared that if Hiccup and the others were discovered then they all could be in great danger.</p><p>The fact that Hiccup had, supposedly, befriended the princess of Dunbroch did not exactly set her mind at ease. Judging by what Eret had said, and by what Valka believed, she supposed the princess might legitimately care for Hiccup, but that did not change the fact that Berk and Dunbroch were still enemies. That in mind, it was fair to assume that the King and Queen of Dunbroch might very well frown upon a Viking befriending their daughter. There was simply no telling what her parents might do if they found out about their friendship.</p><p>She sighed heavily as she tried to push her troubled thoughts to the back of her mind and to focus on the task at hand. So far, her search had yielded very little, most of which seemed of little importance. She was so focused on her search that she barely noticed Valka coming down the stairs with two mugs in her hand.</p><p>“Astrid,” Valka called out</p><p>“Yeah,” she replied as she continued to leaf through some old drawings. Valka shook her head.</p><p>“You’ve been at this for days,” Valka replied, “You should take a break.” Astrid continued to look through the papers without a word. Valka walked up beside her and held the hot mug out in front of her. Astrid raised her eyes to the mug and then glanced up at Valka. She smiled slightly as she put the papers down and carefully took the mug from Valka.</p><p>“Thanks,” Astrid replied. Valka nodded. Astrid held the mug to her nose and inhaled the aromatic hot steam.</p><p>“Mmmm, what is this,” Astrid questioned. Valka smiled slightly as she sat in the chair across from Astrid.</p><p>“It’s just warm yak milk with a bit of honey, and just a bit of licorice root.” Astrid took a small sip and then looked up at Valka in pleasant surprise. She nodded her approval. Valka smiled.</p><p>“The secret is the licorice root,” Valka replied, “It gives it a nice subtle flavor, but it’s also good for calming the stomach. I used to drink it every day when I was pregnant with Hiccup.“ Astrid suddenly gulped what was in her mouth too quickly which nearly caused her to choke. She sat forward as she coughed a few times, then she took a deep breath.  </p><p>“Are you okay,” Valka asked in concern. Astrid nodded as she patted her chest a few times.</p><p>“I’m fine,” Astrid replied, “just went down too fast.” She glanced up at Valka briefly but quickly averted her eyes. Valka just gazed at her with a knowing smile.</p><p>“How long have you known,” Astrid asked without looking up. Valka sat back in her chair and smiled down at the girl.</p><p>“Oh, I’ve suspected since you got back,” Valka replied, “but it's become a little more obvious recently.”</p><p>“Obvious,” Astrid questioned, “how?”</p><p>“You’re practically glowing,” Valka replied, “then there is the morning sickness, you haven't taken mead with your meals since you got back, and you are sort of starting to show just a bit.” Astrid laid her hand on her belly and looked up at Valka wide-eyed.</p><p>“Please don’t tell anyone,” Astrid replied.</p><p>“It’s not my place to tell anyone Astrid,” Valka replied, “your secret is safe with me, but I’m sure most of the mothers probably already suspect.” Astrid nodded.</p><p>“Does Eret know yet,” Valka questioned. Astrid inadvertently reached up to the pendant that hung around her neck and fiddled with it as she looked up at Valka.</p><p>“He does,” Astrid replied. She seemed to force a smile as she dropped her eyes from Valka.</p><p>“Is everything okay Astrid,” Valka asked in slight concern. Astrid nodded wordlessly but Valka could see that something was weighing on her mind.<br/>
Astrid sighed heavily, then took another sip of her warm drink. Though most times she kept it well hidden, she was still troubled over everything Eret had recently told her of his past. But what weighed on her the most was his confession that he feared becoming a father. Though Eret was happy about the baby, the news had brought up many things from his past, that still troubled him til this day, which caused him to approach his impending fatherhood with trepidation. She only wished that Eret could see himself as she saw him. He was kind, brave, confident and strong. He was a good man deep down, a good man that had once made a few bad choices in his life, but a good man none the less. He had the makings of a good father if only he had the confidence that he could be so. Still the knowledge of his hard past made her heart feel heavy. She sighed as she looked up at Valka.</p><p>“Everything is fine,” Astrid said, “Eret is really happy.” Valka nodded as she gazed at Astrid curiously. She was not convinced that Astrid was being completely forthcoming.</p><p>“You know you can talk to me Astrid,” Valka replied, “mother to mother.” Astrid shook her head as she debated her actions. She averted her eyes as she continued to fiddle with the pendant around her neck. Despite Valka’s encouragement, Astrid seemed reluctant to confide in her. Valka nodded, as she gazed at Astrid. She took notice of the pendant that she held in her fingers and smiled slightly.</p><p>“Your pendant is lovely,” Valka complimented, “was it from Eret?” Astrid nodded as she turned her eyes back to Valka. She let the pendant slip from her fingers and dangle from her neck. Valka reached out and lifted the pendant up to see it better. She smiled reminiscently.</p><p>“It’s strange…it sort of reminds me of the pendant Stoick gave me,” Valka said, “I mean the design is very different but it sort of has a similar style to it. Just out of curiosity, where did Eret get this from?”</p><p>“Uh...his mother,” Astrid replied with a shrug, “see, his father gave it to her and then she gave it to Eret when he was a boy.”</p><p>“A family heirloom then,” Valka replied in interest, "the one Stoick gave me was also a family heirloom. It was passed down nearly five generations, now it belongs to Hiccup.” Astrid remained silent as she listened. Valka studied the engraved image on the pendent. It was the symbol of a downward facing sword in front of three interlocking circles. As she traced the intricately carved design with her finger, she couldn’t help but to be reminded somewhat of the symbol of the interlocking hearts on the pendant she had given to Hiccup. </p><p>“What does this symbol mean,” Valka asked in curiosity.</p><p>Astrid shrugged.</p><p>“I...I don’t really know exactly,” Astrid replied, “his mother told him it was a family crest but Eret doesn’t really know for sure. I...I mean he doesn’t really know all that much about his family really.”</p><p>“So, his mother passed it to him and now he’s given it to you,” Valka smiled as she dropped the pendant gently from her fingers, “to pass to his little one when the time comes.”</p><p>“Yeah, sort of,” Astrid replied, “but it’s uh, it’s a little more complicated than that.” Valka continued to gaze at Astrid in curiosity.</p><p>“How so,” Valka asked. Astrid took another sip of the warm milk. She looked up at Valka once more.</p><p>“I...I can’t say,” Astrid replied, “It’s not my place...Eret has a complicated past, but it’s his story, not mine.” Valka nodded in understanding. She leaned forward with a sigh.</p><p>“Well, I’m always here,” Valka replied, “if ever you change your mind.” Astrid nodded but remained silent.</p><p>“Now,” Valka replied changing the subject, “as far as our search goes, have you found anything of interest?” Astrid sighed heavily.</p><p>“Not a thing,” she replied, “nothing about this love affair between Hiccup the first and the queen and not a thing about any banishment. If there was ever anything here, I’m assuming Hiccup took it with him.” Valka sighed in slight disappointment.</p><p>“Well, maybe he will find all his answers in Dunbroch,” Valka replied.</p><p>“Yes, but how long will that take,” Astrid complained, “from what Eret said they aren’t even close and if Berk is Dunbroch’s enemy there is no way they will just let them into the archives to look. I mean, I suppose this princess might help them but that doesn’t change the fact that both our people are enemies. Not to mention the danger Hiccup is putting himself and the others in just by being there.” Valka sat back in her chair as she thought about everything Astrid had said.</p><p>“In the meantime, Eret and Fish are bent on helping Hiccup,” Astrid continued, “while I’m stuck here running Berk! And the fact that there is literally nothing I can do to help is so frustrating!” Valka reached out and gently rested a hand upon Astrid’s shoulder. Astrid took a deep breath as she turned her eyes to Valka. Valka smiled back at her reassuringly.</p><p>“They will be fine,” Valka replied, “Eret’s letter didn’t mention anything concerning. So just take a deep breath and try to calm down. I know you are worried, but getting all worked up over it will not help anyone, not to mention the stress is bad for the baby. Your number one priority is protecting that little one in your belly, okay.” Astrid nodded silently.</p><p>“Now,” Valka smiled, “let’s get back to our search. I am absolutely positive that if there is any evidence still here, we will most definitely find it.” She gently patted Astrid’s shoulder and turned her eyes back to the array of papers, maps and books strewn about the study. Astrid smiled slightly at Valka.</p><p>“How can you be so nice to me,” Astrid questioned, “after what I did…after how I hurt Hiccup?” Valka turned her eyes back to Astrid.</p><p>“I don’t blame you Astrid,” Valka replied, “What happened between you and Hiccup wasn’t anyone’s fault.”</p><p>“But you said it yourself,” Astrid replied, “I broke his heart, how could you just forgive me?”</p><p>“There is nothing to forgive,” Valka replied, “you both were meant to go through that .Everything happens for a reason Astrid. I truly believe that going through all of that was to set you both on the paths you were always meant to take.” Astrid smiled slightly.</p><p>“You really believe Hiccup’s path is leading him to Dunbroch…to this…princess don’t you,” Astrid questioned.</p><p>“I can’t say for sure,” Valka replied, “but I do think it’s a possibility. Astrid nodded as she thought about it.</p><p>“Well,” Astrid smiled slightly, “I guess we better get back to work then. Valka nodded in agreement and turned back to the stacks of papers on the floor while Astrid picked up where she left off.</p><p>As Valka averted her eyes to the floor, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of something just sticking out from under Hiccup’s work bench. She furrowed her brow as she turned and tried to make out what it was from where she sat. Astrid huffed and continued to leaf through some random papers. Valka stood without a word and bent down by the workbench to see what was there. She pulled out an, old leather satchel. She furrowed her brow as she gazed at it. She wondered if had been there since the chest had broken the day Hiccup discovered the hidden compartment. She lifted it carefully and laid it down upon the workbench. She untied the leather strap, opened the flap and reached inside.  She carefully pulled out what looked to be a stack of letters. She stared at the letters in surprise, taking note of the green wax seal that was on the letter at the top of the pile, particularly the symbol that had been pressed into it. She looked up at Astrid in shock.  </p><p>“Astrid,” Valka called out.</p><p>“Hmmm,” Astrid replied distractedly as she continued to look through the papers she was focused on.</p><p>“Astrid,” Valka called again, “Astrid you need to see this.” Astrid looked up at Valka curiously. She furrowed her brow at the sight of Valka’s bewildered expression. She put the papers back down on the floor beside her and then stood and headed in Valka’s direction.</p><p>“They were in a satchel under the desk,” Valka replied, “Hiccup must not have seen them there.” Astrid approached the work bench to see what Valka had found.</p><p>“Letters,” Astrid questioned.</p><p>“Yes,” Valka replied, “but look closer...the seal....” Astrid picked up the top letter and looked closely at the seal. Her eyes went wide in disbelief and slight confusion. The symbol pressed into the wax was identical to the symbol on her pendant. The symbol that was supposedly Eret’s family crest. She looked up at Valka in confusion.</p><p>“What is this,” Astrid questioned.</p><p>“I’m not sure,” Valka replied. Astrid turned her eyes back to the letter. She opened it carefully and began to read. She looked up at Valka briefly.</p><p>“It’s from the woman in Dunbroch,” Astrid replied. She carefully folded the paper once more and gazed curiously upon the seal. Could Eret’s great grandfather have hailed from Dunbroch?<br/>
————————————————————————-</p><p>Dunbroch</p><p>Eret sat silently by the fire sharpening his sword with a piece of slate, trying in vain to dis<br/>
tract his mind from thoughts of the symbol that he had recognized in the wax of Merida’s letter. It had been troubling him since the moment he had seen it, though he tried to push the thought of it from his mind. He couldn't help but to wonder if Dunbroch could possibly be the homeland his father had failed to find. </p><p>Though his curiosity was piqued by his accidental discovery he was very reluctant to look any further into it. His fear was ending up as his father, so obsessed with finding the answer that everything else, including his family, came second to his search. Eret had grown up an orphan because his father left him behind for his search and his mother died of a broken heart. He refused to be that man, he refused to do to Astrid and his child what his father had done to him and his mother. </p><p>He sighed heavily as he lifted his sword to his eyes to see if the sharpness of the blade was sufficient. He carefully ran his fingers along the blade. Satisfied with his work, he tucked the slate in his pocket, then re-sheathed his sword. He was distracted from his thoughts when Fish sat down by the fire beside him.</p><p>“So, what's the word Eret,” Fish asked in curiosity, “what did Hiccup tell you about the princess?” Eret glanced up at Fish with a slight smirk on his face.</p><p>“It’s not exactly my place to say Fish,” Eret replied. Fishlegs sighed heavily in annoyance. He dropped his eyes from Eret and slouched his shoulders.</p><p>“Okay,” Fish sighed, “but...based on what he told you...”</p><p>“In confidence,” Eret reminded him. Fish rolled his eyes.</p><p>“Yes, in confidence,” Fish reiterated, “what’s your opinion on their status?” Eret couldn’t help but to chuckle at Fishlegs‘ interest in the situation between Hiccup and Merida.</p><p>“If you are so interested,” Eret smirked, “why don’t you just ask Hiccup yourself.”</p><p>“Oh, come on Eret,” Fish groaned, “can’t you just give me something, anything, any detail at all?”</p><p>“Absolutely not,” Eret replied as he stood and stoked the flames of the fire, “Hic and I are finally on good terms again, I’m not gonna screw that up by repeating what he told me in confidence.”</p><p>“Fine,” Fish groaned as he crossed his arms over his chest in discouragement.</p><p>“Besides,” Eret replied, “I don’t think he’ll keep it a secret much longer, I have a feeling after today, he’ll be shouting his feelings from the rooftops.” Fishlegs’ eyes lit up at Eret’s comment.</p><p>“I knew it,” Fish replied excitedly, “Hic’s in love with her; isn’t he?“ Eret shook his head in denial.</p><p>“I’m not saying anything,” Eret replied.</p><p>“That’s why he wanted to be alone with her isn’t it,” Fish questioned excitedly.</p><p>“Fish,” Eret laughed, “you need to stop mate, you are far too excited about this.”</p><p>“I can’t help it,” Fish replied, “I’m a romantic.”</p><p>“Clearly,” Eret replied teasingly</p><p>“Hey,” Fish huffed, “there is nothing wrong with being a romantic. I’ll have you know Ruffnut loves my sensitive side.” Eret rolled his eyes.</p><p>“You two were definitely made for each other,” Eret replied.</p><p>“Anyway,” Fish went on, “Hiccup’s my friend too and I just want him to finally find a little bit of happiness. You know he’s had it pretty rough the last few years. It just would be nice to see him happy for a change.” Eret nodded in agreement.</p><p>“That it would mate,” Eret replied, “that it would.”<br/>
————————————————————————-<br/>
Glean Sith</p><p>Merida’s eyes fluttered open and she let out a yawn. She was comfortable and warm and awoke in contentment. She raised her head and looked around in confusion for a moment as she realized not only was she still in the forest, but it had grown slightly darker and she didn’t know how long she had been asleep. The warmth of the fire still burned before her, but it wasn’t just the fire keeping her warm, it was also Hiccup.</p><p>She gazed up at him and smiled softly. He sat peacefully sleeping, with his head leaned back against the log behind him. She was practically curled up in his lap and both his arms were wrapped tightly around her. She lay her head back down upon his chest and closed her eyes again for a long moment. She silently allowed herself to revel in their closeness. </p><p>As she pressed herself closer to him, she took comfort in the safety and warmth of his arms. His soft even breaths rocked her gently to and fro, nearly lulling her back to sleep. She was close enough to hear the rhythmic beat of his heart, which she could swear beat in perfect rhythm with her own. Her mind drifted back to the moment he kissed her, and his heartfelt confession that followed. She began to ponder her own growing feelings for the amazing man beside her. It seemed she had pondered over her feelings for him since the moment they met. She had tried to explain their instant connection, she had questioned whether her feelings were true or just some form of infatuation with him. </p><p>She had often questioned whether or not Hiccup felt anything besides friendship for her. Though there were many instances that his feelings seemed clear, he had always back pedaled, and he had always pulled away leaving her to wonder if the feelings in her own heart were nothing more than wishful thinking. But now he had confessed his feelings; he had told her that he cared for her and wanted to be with her. She could no longer deny their affinity for one another. Hiccup’s feelings for her were real, or so he said. Her mind drifted back to his confession from earlier.<br/>
.......<br/>
"It's just, y-you're amazing," Hiccup said, "a-and beautiful, and smart, and fun a-and I...I have these feelings for you" Merida just gazed up at him in uncertainty. He gently took her hands in his once more.</p><p>"Merida, I...I care about you," Hiccup replied with a slight smile, "I know it may sound crazy, but I...I feel like I've been drawn to you since the moment we met, and I feel like maybe you and I, m-maybe we could have something, ya know, something good, something real." He gazed at her longingly</p><p>"A-and kissing you," he paused and gazed into her sky-blue eyes, "it...it felt right, but maybe I shouldn't have done it without your consent. I...I'm sorry that I acted without thinking, but it wasn't a mistake, okay. I wanted to kiss you and I..." He paused a moment as he gazed deep into her pale blue eyes, "I want to be with you Merida."<br/>
…....<br/>
Merida could feel her heart flutter at the thought of his heartfelt words. His confession meant everything to her and it was clear in her heart that she cared deeply for Hiccup, yet still her fear and uncertainty continued to hold her back. There were already so many extenuating circumstances, so many obstacles in their path, so many things working against them. She wondered if they took the chance to be together, how they could possibly overcome them all. </p><p>She took a deep breath and released it slowly as she tried to push the worries from her mind. She focused on this moment and how it felt to be so close to Hiccup. She pressed her face close against his chest, reluctant to let this one precious moment of closeness to end. When she opened her eyes again, she sighed heavily as she realized it was nearing dusk and she still needed to get home before dark.  She lifted her head and gazed up at Hiccup.</p><p>“Hiccup,” she called out as she shook him gently, “Hiccup wake up!”  </p><p>“Hmmm, what,” he muttered sleepily as he adjusted himself beside her. She smiled in spite of herself.</p><p>“I have to go,” she replied, “I have to get home.” She attempted to sit up but he tightened his arms around her and pulled her back to him, causing her to blush.  She looked back at him and could see that although his eyes remained closed, he displayed a small playful smirk upon his face.</p><p>“Hiccup,” she laughed, “I’m serious!” </p><p>“Okay...okay,” he yawned as he let her go. She reluctantly pulled herself away from him. He sighed as he smiled up at her. </p><p>“How long were we asleep,” Hiccup questioned as he sat forward and rubbed his eyes. Merida shrugged as she stood and walked over to her now dry dress. She ducked behind a tree, dropped the blanket from her shoulders and then quickly pulled the dress over her kirtle. She then neatly folded the blanket and set it down upon the log beside Hiccup.</p><p>“Not sure,” she replied, “at least a few hours...it’s nearly dusk and I have to go.”<br/>
Hiccup stretched his arms over his head as he watched her collect her things. He stood up and headed over to her. </p><p>“Will I see you tomorrow princess,” he asked hopefully. </p><p>“I have my lessons tomorrow,” Merida sighed as she turned toward him, “I’ll be tied up all morn’, but I’ll try to come after lunch.” He sighed dejectedly as he gazed at her. She flung her bow over her shoulder and refastened her quiver and then began to climb up the ridge toward Angus. Hiccup followed a few steps behind her.  Once she reached the horse, she began to loosen Angus’ reigns from the tree he was tied to.</p><p>“Hey, if you don’t mind,” Hiccup questioned, “may I hold onto your grandmother’s journal, so I can keep looking for more clues?” Merida turned to him and smiled. </p><p>“Of course,” she replied. She reached into her bag, pulled out the old book and held it out to him.</p><p>“Thanks,” he replied. Merida nodded in response. His fingers just grazed hers as he gently took the book from her hands causing her to blush slightly. Hiccup smiled at her reaction. He could feel his heart beating furiously and all he wanted to do was pull her to him and kiss her once more. In her sudden nervousness, Merida quickly turned her attention back to Angus. As she fumbled nervously with the knot in his reigns, she suddenly remembered something. She turned back to face Hiccup.</p><p>“By the way,” she replied, “do ye remember when I mentioned introducing ye to my parents soon?” Hiccup furrowed his brow as he nodded.</p><p>“Of course,” he replied, “we were supposed to talk about that today, weren't we?”</p><p>“Aye, we were,” Merida replied with a slight smile, “but our conversation took a more interesting turn today.” Hiccup smiled slightly in return.</p><p>“I hope you're not having second thoughts about it,” Hiccup replied, “uh, that is, I mean a-about my meeting your parents.”</p><p>“Of course not,” Merida replied, “In fact, I think we may have to introduce ye sooner than we thought.” Hiccup furrowed his brow at her comment.  </p><p>“Why is that,” he questioned in slight concern, “they’re not suspicious, are they?” Merida shook her head. </p><p>“Not in the least,” Merida smiled, “it’s my brothers. I’m afraid they caught me sneaking out to leave yer last letter and I was forced to tell them about ye.” Hiccup raised his eyebrows at her in worried surprise.</p><p>“Sorry, I meant to tell ye earlier,” Merida replied, “I-I mean, I meant to tell ye first thing…but uh, I guess I got a little distracted.” </p><p>“Distracted huh,” Hiccup smirked. </p><p>“Don’t flatter yourself Viking,” Merida replied with a smile, “you're not my only distraction.”  Hiccup chuckled.  </p><p>“Is that so,” he replied crossing his arms over his chest. Merida smiled and raised an eyebrow at him. </p><p>“Wouldn’t ye like to know,” she replied.  Hiccup smirked at her. </p><p>“And would these happen to be the same brothers you were going to brag to about killing me,” Hiccup questioned sarcastically.</p><p>“Aye, the very same,” she smirked up at him. He furrowed his brow at her questioningly.</p><p>“Great,” Hiccup replied, “so, what does this mean exactly? Are they going to come after me for showing interest in their sister?“ Merida chuckled.</p><p>“They’re ten years old,” Merida replied, “I think ye’ll be okay, although they have been known to be wee devils on occasion.”</p><p>“Surprisingly that doesn’t make me feel any better,” Hiccup replied flatly. Merida chuckled slightly at his response.</p><p>“Don’t worry,” she smiled, “I swore them to secrecy, however knowing them, it's probably only a matter of time before they accidentally blurt it out.”</p><p>“Oh, even better,” Hiccup replied, “so, around what time should I expect the guards tomorrow...I’d like to get a full breakfast in before I’m arrested.” Merida chuckled at his comment.</p><p>“Aye, yer being just a wee bit dramatic Hiccup, don’t ye think,” Merida replied.</p><p>“Dramatic,” Hiccup scoffed, “don’t you think there is a possibility that they might, I don’t know, run to your parents about your questionable new friend or...maybe come after me themselves to defend their sister’s honor.”</p><p>“Defend my honor,” Merida chuckled, “from ye?”</p><p>“Viking remember,” Hiccup replied pointing to himself, “not to mention I’m from a banished clan. I mean, technically I’m still your enemy. You don’t think they could see me as a threat to your honor.” Merida smirked up at him.</p><p>“Relax Hiccup,” she replied, “I told them very little and I left out the part of ye being a Viking so for all they know, yer just my new friend. I’m fairly certain there is no law against my having a friend.”</p><p>“Well, that’s good to know,” Hiccup replied as he took a few steps closer to her, “I’d hate to have to add another crime to my roster.”</p><p>“And here I thought ye were nothin’ more than an unapologetic criminal,” Merida replied haughtily. Hiccup smirked at her comment.</p><p>“Well, I guess it depends on the crime princess,” Hiccup replied.</p><p>“Does it now,” she questioned.</p><p>“Of course,” Hiccup replied with a grin, “I mean, I try to avoid breaking the law as much as possible, but some crimes are worth the trouble.” Merida chuckled slightly at his answer.</p><p>“Still,” Merida replied, “I do think the sooner ye come forward the better. If anyone besides my brothers were to find out ye were here or...or discover the truth about ye, it could get ye and Toothless in a heap o’ trouble. Not to mention yer friends.” Hiccup nodded in understanding.</p><p>“Alright then,” Hiccup sighed, “tomorrow we will come up with a plan, okay.”</p><p>“Aye, tomorrow,” she smiled up at him. “as I said, the sooner the better.” Merida paused as she gazed up at him with a look of genuine concern in her eyes.  “Lord knows I just…I couldnae bear it if something happened to ye.”  Hiccup’s heart nearly leapt at her heartfelt words of concern.</p><p>“You really do care,” he smiled sweetly as he gazed at her.</p><p>“Of course, I do,” she replied with a genuine smile. He stepped closer to her and gently took her hand in his as he continued to gaze at her lovingly.  She looked down at her hand in his for a moment before turning her eyes back to his.</p><p> “Hiccup,” Merida said softly, “if we can find the truth and set things right, then our people could form a new alliance. Maybe then....”</p><p>“We’ll figure it out soon enough, okay,” Hiccup interrupted. Merida smiled up at him shyly.</p><p>“Amongst other things,” she replied softly. He smiled warmly at her in return.</p><p>“All in due course, princess,” he replied affectionately. She nodded at him and smiled. Without thought, Hiccup reached up and gently brushed the curls from her face with his opposite hand and tucked them carefully behind her ear. Her cheek tingled where his fingers grazed her skin causing her heart to flutter and her breath to catch in her throat.  </p><p>As Hiccup gazed at her longingly, he gently pulled her into his arms. Merida moved forward without resistance, allowing him to wrap his arms around her shoulders as she lay her head gently upon his chest. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply as she found herself once again soothed by the beating of his heart.</p><p>As Hiccup held her close, his heart felt as if it were racing and he felt nearly overwhelmed by his feelings for her. He leaned forward and rested his cheek against her soft hair as he gently ran his fingers through her long, tangled curls. It was clear in his heart, that wherever she was, was where he was always meant to be. He wanted nothing more than to profess his love for her once again, but he held his tongue. Instead, he reveled in their moment of closeness.</p><p>After a few moments Merida lifted her head and gazed up at him. She smiled slightly but there was still a hint of uncertainty in her eyes. As if sensing her apprehension, Hiccup leaned forward gently resting his forehead against hers. He kept his eyes locked with hers in silent reassurance.</p><p>“I…I know you're afraid,” Hiccup whispered softly, “but you don’t have to be. I…I would never hurt you Merida.” Merida nodded as she gazed back into his intense green eyes. She knew in her heart that his words were sincere but her worry remained. She could not help but to fear that whatever this was starting between them would not end well because of all of the unavoidable obstacles that assuredly awaited them. Despite her hesitance, she still took comfort in his words; just as she had found comfort in the words from his letter, that he would do everything in his power to protect their friendship and to prove to her parents that he was not the type of Viking they might believe him to be. She knew it was going to be difficult to win over her mother, but it would be near impossible to gain the approval of the Lords. </p><p>As she gazed up at him, his longing gaze caused her heart to race. She felt as if she could just get lost in his eyes and his loving gaze if she only allowed herself. She held her breath as he leaned slightly closer until their lips were mere inches apart. She gulped slightly as she anticipated his actions, but despite his nearly overwhelming desire to kiss her once more, he respectfully restrained himself.</p><p>Merida, however, despite her trepidation did not hold back. Without a word, and against her better judgement, Merida stood up on her toes and kissed him tenderly upon the cheek. Her simple and unexpected action sent chills through his body. He closed his eyes for a moment as he tightened his arms around her slightly. There was no question left in his mind, he knew he loved Merida with all of his heart and he was sure that one way or another they were meant to be. Merida pulled away once more as she smiled up at him slightly. Hiccup rested his forehead upon hers once more as he smiled down at her wanting so much to reciprocate her actions. The two stood for a long moment just gazing at each other, both seemingly hesitant to part.</p><p>“I’ll see you tomorrow Hiccup,” Merida said sweetly as she smiled up at him. She reluctantly pulled herself from his arms and turned back toward Angus. Hiccup followed after her.</p><p>“I’ll be waiting,” he replied. She paused a moment and glanced back at him once more, still seemingly hesitant to leave. </p><p>“Go,” Hiccup smiled, “I don’t want you to be late.” Merida smiled back at him. She had a million thoughts running through her mind but it seemed that her words alluded her. All she knew for certain was that his arms were warm and comforting, and the only place she wanted to be. Without a word she quickly crashed back into his arms. He was taken by surprise at first but he slowly wrapped his arms around her one last time and held her tightly against him. After a moment or two, Merida pulled away slowly. She gazed up at him longingly. As if by habit, Hiccup leaned slightly forward and kissed her tenderly upon the forehead and then reluctantly pulled himself away from her.</p><p>“You need to go,” he said softly as he clasped both her hands in his, “as much as I really want you to stay; I also don’t want to get you in trouble again.” Merida nodded as she smiled up at him once more. She sighed softly, as she pulled her hands from his, then turned and quickly mounted Angus.  As she took the reins, she turned her eyes back to Hiccup and smiled warmly.</p><p>“Stay out of trouble Viking,” she said firmly. </p><p>“You have my word princess,” Hiccup chuckled.  With that she turned the horse and rode away through the forest. Hiccup just watched until she was out of sight.  As he turned away, Toothless whined beside him and nudged his shoulder playfully. Hiccup looked up at the dragon to see him sigh and bat his eyes at him mockingly. Hiccup grinned in amusement.</p><p>“Shut-up ya overgrown gecko,” Hiccup chuckled as he pushed the dragon back. Toothless playfully nudged him again.  Hiccup smiled as he turned his eyes back to the path that Merida had taken. He sighed heavily.</p><p>“I think I’m in love Bud,” Hiccup replied with a smile. Toothless rolled his eyes, then groaned as if to say, “I already knew that.” The dragon then smirked and playfully nudged Hiccup once more. Hiccup turned to the dragon and grinned.</p><p>“Come on,” Hiccup said, “let’s get back.”<br/>
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Hiccup and Toothless made their way through the darkening woods on their way back to camp. Try as he might, Hiccup could not stop thinking about Merida and all that had happened between them in the glen. He had admitted to her his true feelings, but more than that he had also stated aloud the depths of his heart. He had said that he loved her, though in her slumber she had not heard his full confession. </p><p>Not only was it the first time he had said the words aloud, but the first time he had admitted how deeply he felt for her, even to himself. He was in love with Merida, she was everything to him, she was his present and his future. He wanted nothing more than to be with her, to give his heart to her completely, and to do whatever he needed to do to make her his.  His mind inadvertently drifted to the letter that his great, great grandfather had written to Mairead.<br/>
….<br/>
‘Fate is not the arrangements made for us. Fate does not care about station, or caste or political gain. Fate does not consider the plans made by men. True fate is found where the heart leads and my heart only leads me to you. True fate is written in the stars above. I know in my heart the you are my fate. But if by some chance I am wrong; if my fate is not to love you then I would rewrite the stars themselves to be with you.<br/>
….<br/>
No truer words had ever been spoken and Hiccup knew exactly how his grandfather felt. He understood the depths of his predecessors' heart, and the magnitude of the love he had for Mairead. For his own heart knew the deepness of that kind of love. He was certain that he felt for Merida, as Hiccup the first had felt for Mairead. He could not help but wonder if this could have been the meaning behind all his dreams. Perhaps not only had they been leading him to Dunbroch to solve the mystery of his grandfather, but perhaps they also had been leading him to Merida.  Perhaps feeling the depths of his grandfather's love for Mairead had helped him to recognize the depths of his own love for Merida.</p><p>He knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that he was destined to be with her and the moment he kissed her only solidified his resolve. He was more certain than he had ever been before; Merida was his fate, his true love, the one he had always been meant to find. Though her reaction to his initial confession wasn’t exactly what he expected, his hope remained unwavering that they were meant to be. He need only have faith.<br/>
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Macintosh castle</p><p>Just outside Macintosh castle, on the training grounds Ryan Macintosh stood steady with his bow; his notched arrow aimed at a target a few yards away. He gazed ahead in total concentration. He held his breath for just a moment and then released the arrow. It flew steady and true hitting the target dead center. He smiled in pride. He was distracted by clapping echoing from behind him. He turned with a confident smirk as he brushed his long mahogany hair from his face. His father stepped forth with a smirk on his face.</p><p>“Nice shot son,” Lord Macintosh said.</p><p>“Thanks father,” Ryan replied.</p><p>“Ye’ve certainly come a long way from the Dunbroch games,” Macintosh replied. Ryan rolled his eyes at his father’s comment as he headed to the target to collect his arrow.</p><p>“Aye, tell me again how disappointed ye are that I didn’t win the hand o’ the princess in one fell swoop,” Ryan replied in annoyance, “I don’t think I’ve heard it enough.”</p><p>“I don’t know what was more disappointing,” Lord Macintosh replied, “yer terrible shot or yer immature behavior after. I mean, na wonder th’ princess ne’er gave ye a second look.” Ryan ripped the arrow from the target in frustration. He turned and glared at his father.</p><p>“What did ye expect father,” Ryan spat, “How was I tae know she’d chose archery o’ all things. It was her that took it upon herself tae make fools of us. I knew she used a bow, but I didn’t know that she could be just as skilled as a man at it. Nae tae mention I’ve never failed at anything in my life before then. I mean, I was practically a kid, so excuse me for not handling it well at the time.”</p><p>“That’s nae th’ point,” Macintosh replied, “th’ point is that yer future should hae been set on that day, and because ye acted childishly we are still waiting for a choice tae be made.”</p><p>“That’s nae my fault,” Ryan replied angrily, “Th’ King and Queen changed th’ rules, because Merida wanted her freedom tae chose for herself. I don’t see how that is my doing!”</p><p>“She shouldn’t hae had th’ opportunity to demand such a thing in th’ first place,” Macintosh replied.</p><p>“Again,” Ryan replied in aggravation, “how is that my fault, or my problem?”</p><p>“Ye should hae won her over,” Macintosh replied, “with nothin’ more than a wink o’ yer eye. She’s just a girl Ryan; just a look at ye should hae been enough tae make her swoon. But ye had to screw it up by acting like an arse. And she has nae been receptive tae ye since.”</p><p>“Well Merida is nae like other girls,” Ryan replied firmly, “she’s nae one tae swoon at such things. She’s different...she’s special...she’s a challenge.”</p><p>“She’s spoiled is what she is,” Macintosh replied, “a sel righteous 'n' ornery lassie. The only thing special about that girl is that she comes with th’ crown o’ Dunbroch.” Ryan glared at his father.</p><p>“Don’t speak o’ her that way,” Ryan replied through gritted teeth.</p><p>“Enough Ryan,” Macintosh replied dismissively, “don’t act as if yer in love with her!” Ryan glared at his father. Macintosh sighed heavily as he reached out and rested his hand upon his son’s shoulder.</p><p>“Ye may hae a bit of a soft spot for the lass,” Macintosh replied, “but I urge ye tae not lose yer focus. She’s nothin’ more than a means to an end son; that end bein’ ye on th’ throne o’ Dunbroch.”</p><p>“Nae, yer wrong,” Ryan replied, “she’s more than that.”</p><p>“Ye best nae forget what happened th’ last time ye let yer feelin’s get th’ better o’ ye son,” Macintosh replied sternly, “I suggest ye put yer feelin’s aside, they will only distract ye from the real prize.” Ryan looked at his father with a puzzled expression on his face.</p><p>“What are ye sayin’,” Ryan questioned.</p><p>“I’m sayin, ye will have yer second chance tae win th’ princess,” Macintosh smirked, “th’ clans are tae head tae Dunbroch in a few days' time. There ye and th’ others will hae th’ chance tae court th’ princess, tae win her heart. So long as ye do as I say, I hae a feelin’ this time things may work in yer favor.” Ryan gazed at his father questioningly.</p><p>“Th’ King and Queen actually agreed tae that,” Ryan questioned skeptically.</p><p>“Aye,” Macintosh replied, “and ye best not screw it up this time.” With that, Lord Macintosh turned and headed back inside the castle leaving Ryan to think about what he had said.  Ryan stood dazed for a moment at the prospect of, not only, seeing Merida again, but also being given a second chance to prove himself to her once again.</p><p>Though the Dunbroch games had turned into a complete disaster, Merida had left a lasting impression on him. She was unlike any girl he had ever met. She was spirited, and sassy, and unimpressed with feats of strength. She was unmoved by bragging, or brandish displays. She had a mind of her own, and was not afraid to speak it. Not to mention she could fight as well as any Scotsmen. </p><p>Despite his father’s opinion of her, Ryan found Merida to be practically irresistible and the fact that he could do nothing to impress her, drove him practically mad. He said she was a challenge, but that was an understatement. Just trying to get her to notice him was like trying to catch the wind with a net. The problem was he didn’t know how to gain her attention without bragging or showing off. It seemed no matter what he did, she only wrote him off as nothing more than a pompous, ego driven arse. She wouldn't even give him a chance. But maybe this turn of events would change things, maybe even she had changed since the Dunbroch games. Perhaps now that she was older and more mature, she would be more receptive to his advances this time around. After all she was of the marrying age now, surely, she was ready to choose a suitor by now. Ryan sighed as he thought of her.</p><p>When they were children, he had always taken a liking to her, though he was far too full of pride to ever admit it. He tried like mad to impress her on the rare occasion that his family visited Dunbroch, but Merida was always far too busy to notice. She had a heart for adventure, and wanted little to do with the things most girls did. Instead of being impressed by the boys, she’d try like mad to compete with them, if not beat them at their own game. She didn’t act like any girl he ever met and Ryan had always been drawn to her free and insatiable spirit.</p><p>When they were teens, his feelings changed slightly. He didn’t only notice her free spirit but also her beauty. As a teen, Ryan had stolen the hearts of many pretty girls, but to him Merida’s beauty far surpassed them. He was quite taken with her, though she still paid him no mind whatsoever. It might even have been her complete disinterest that drew him the most. She was a challenge; she was hard to get and that only made him want to win her affections all the more. The problem was that even with all his charm, and flirtatious behavior, smooth-talking, and even his good looks, he could not sway Merida so easily as he could sway other girls. He’d even tried to kiss her once, though he had ended up with nothing to show for it save a black eye. This did not sway his feelings for her, however, if anything, it left him only crushing harder than before. To top it off when her mother insisted she apologize, Merida said she’d rather die first. Her blatant refusal and defiant attitude got her into a heap of trouble with her parents but only left Ryan more smitten than before. She was brave, and unapologetic, he liked that about her. He smiled slightly at the far-off memory.</p><p>His feelings had not changed, even in these past five years. Despite his father’s harsh comments, Ryan was satisfied with the news his father had brought him. Finally, he would have a real chance to prove himself. He was more determined now than ever before to win Merida’s heart. Who better at his side, after all, than the most beautiful woman in all of Dunbroch.<br/>
————————————————————————-<br/>
Dunbroch</p><p>When Hiccup arrived at camp, he came upon Eret and Fish sitting by the fire talking and laughing amongst themselves. He smiled slightly as he directed Toothless in their direction. Fish smiled when he noticed Hiccup approaching.</p><p>“Hey Hic,” Fish replied, “you're back!” Eret turned to him with a wide grin on his face.</p><p>“Hic,” Eret said smugly, “we were just talking about you mate.” Without a word, Hiccup dismounted Toothless and headed over to the fire with an undeniable grin on his face. He sat upon a log across from Fish and Eret. Eret grinned at him knowingly.</p><p>“So,” Eret questioned, anxiously. Hiccup looked up at Eret and smiled slightly.</p><p>“So,...what,” Hiccup replied. Eret rolled his eyes.</p><p>“So, don’t leave us in suspense mate,” Eret replied, “how did it go?”</p><p>“What the thing with Merida,” Hiccup questioned feigning ignorance.</p><p>“Hiccup you’re killing me,” Eret groaned, “yes, the thing with Merida.” Fish looked anxiously back and forth between the two of them. Hiccup turned to Fish in amusement.</p><p>“Y-you told him what I told you,” Hiccup replied as he turned back to Eret, “didn't you?”</p><p>“What....No,” Eret replied, “I would never betray your confidence....I mean, I may have hinted a little but I did not tell him. He just sort of figured it out all on his own.”</p><p>“Right,” Hiccup replied sarcastically.</p><p>“Oh, come on Hic you're stalling,” Eret replied, “what happened already?” Hiccup sighed heavily as he thought over all that had happened between he and Merida once more. He looked back up at Eret and smiled.</p><p>“Well, honestly,” Hiccup sighed, “it sort of, didn’t go exactly as planned.”</p><p>“What do you mean,” Eret replied in slight disappointment, “you did tell her didn’t you?” Hiccup continued to gaze at Eret but did not answer him right away.</p><p>“Hic,” Eret replied, “don’t tell me you chickened out.” Hiccup chuckled slightly.</p><p>“Of course, I told her,” Hiccup replied. Eret smirked at Hiccup.</p><p>“What did she say,” Fish asked anxiously. Hiccup sighed slightly.</p><p>“Well, she didn’t exactly react the way I hoped she would,” Hiccup replied. Both Eret and Fish sighed in slight disappointment.</p><p>“But it wasn’t bad,” Hiccup explained, “I...I mean, she did admit that she cares about me too, uh, I mean, she didn't like shoot me down or anything. She...she’s just not ready to be more than friends yet.”</p><p>“She put you in the friend zone,” Fishlegs lamented, “unbelievable!” Hiccup rolled his eyes.</p><p>“That’s not what happened, Fish,” Hiccup replied firmly, “I am not stuck in the friend zone.”</p><p>“Seriously,” Fish whined, “it sounds like the friend zone to me.” Hiccup groaned at Fish’s comment.</p><p>“Believe me,” Hiccup replied as his mind drifted back to his and Merida’s tender parting, “I am not in the friend zone…we are much more than that. It...it’s more like somewhere in the middle, uh, more of uh, a...a gray area between friends a-and something more. It...It’s complicated, okay.”</p><p>“Complicated” Eret questioned in concern, “why is everything always complicated with you Hic? I mean either you want to be with her or you don’t. It’s as simple as that.”</p><p>“How I feel is not complicated,” Hiccup replied, “I mean, I know that I want to be with Merida...but the situation is what’s complicated.”</p><p>“What,” Eret started, “just because you're a Viking and she’s not.”</p><p>“There is a lot more to it than that,” Hiccup replied, “you know that!”</p><p>“But Hic,” Eret started.</p><p>“Look, I hear what you're saying,” Hiccup interrupted, “but you don’t understand.” Hiccup paused a moment as he tried to find the right words to explain. </p><p>“The truth is, I...I’m in love with Merida,” Hiccup admitted, “a-and I know she cares for me too, but there are still a lot of things working against us right now, ya know. I..I understand why she’s holding back.”</p><p>“But if you truly love her Hic,” Eret replied, “and she cares for you, then you shouldn’t let anything stand in the way of your being together.”</p><p>”Don’t you get it,” Hiccup huffed, “it’s because I love her. I...I mean, it-it’s all the more reason to not rush things right. All the more reason to take things slow and to give her a little space to-to figure out how she feels.” Eret and Fish looked at him in slight confusion. Hiccup sighed once more.</p><p>“I told you before,” Hiccup sighed, “I don’t want to screw this up, I mean she still has her own issues with love to work through. I can’t just demand she decide and I certainly can’t tell her how to feel!”</p><p>“So, what you’re saying is, you and she are just…taking things slow then,” Eret questioned.</p><p>“Yes,” Hiccup replied as he crossed his arms over his chest, “and I-I told her that I would wait as long as it takes; as long she needs.”</p><p>“But Hic,” Eret started to protest.</p><p>“Look,” Hiccup replied, “I know Merida, she...she’s just afraid to take a chance. She’s afraid to let her guard down. I mean her situation is just a bit complicated. Her whole life she’s been preparing for her future as Queen. There is a lot expected of her. I mean, in order to take the throne at all, she needs to get married. And what’s worse, whoever she chooses has to be approved by the King and Queen and the Lords, and love isn’t even a factor in their decision at all.”</p><p>“Really,” Fish questioned. Hiccup nodded.</p><p>“When I met her, she was already resigned to the fact that her eventual marriage would not be for love at all, but for political gain. I mean, she’s gone practically her whole life believing that true love is nothing more than…than some fairy tale that isn’t real. Because of that she’s afraid to take a chance. She is afraid that if she falls in love, they won’t approve and then she’d have to choose between her throne and her heart.”  Both Fish and Eret continued to gaze at Hiccup in concern.  </p><p>Hiccup sighed once again, “I understand where she’s coming from, and honestly I can’t blame her for guarding her heart. I mean, I’ve been there, I know. The fear of getting your heart broken isn’t easy to get past. So, if a little more time is what she needs, I don’t mind giving her that.” Eret nodded as he thought over Hiccup’s explanation. </p><p>“Truly spoken like a man in love,” Eret replied smugly. Hiccup grinned up at him as a blush formed on his face.</p><p>“I am,” Hiccup admitted, “she’s everything to me and I won’t do anything to jeopardize my chance to be with her.”</p><p>“Okay,” Eret replied, “then what can we do to help?”</p><p>“Well first things first,” Hiccup sighed, “I should probably tell her I’m in love with her while she is actually awake to hear it. “</p><p>“HIC, are you kidding me,” Eret replied, “I thought you said you told her.”</p><p>“I did tell her...uh that I had feelings for her,” Hiccup replied defensively, ”a-and technically I also told her that I thought I was in love with her, but she was asleep.” Both Eret and Fish rolled their eyes and sighed heavily. Hiccup chuckled.</p><p>“In my defense,” Hiccup replied sarcastically, “I didn’t know she was asleep at the time.”</p><p>“Okay so first, you admit you're in love,” Eret huffed, “what then?”</p><p>“Well, she’s coming back tomorrow afternoon,” Hiccup replied, “and she and I are going to come up with a plan for me to come forward and meet her parents. If I can get them to approve of me, that will be half the battle I think.”</p><p>“I thought  you wanted to wait until you found some definitive proof of Berk’s innocence,” Fish replied.</p><p>“Well I...I did,” Hiccup replied, “I mean, finding proof is still the goal, but we both think coming forward now is a better option in the long run. I mean, at least this way I can work on getting her parents to see past the fact that I’m a Viking. If I can win them over, they might appeal to the Lords on my behalf. Not only that but maybe I’ll be able to look through the archives with Merida.”</p><p>“Are you a hundred percent sure that coming forward now is a good idea,” Eret questioned, “I mean given all you’ve told us about how her parents feel about vikings.”</p><p>“I know it’s a risk,” Hiccup replied, “but if I can just get them to hear me out, I’m pretty confident that I can win them over.” </p><p>“Yeah, but Hic, this might be slightly different than the negotiations you’re used to,” Eret replied, “first of all we’ve never come upon a place that we were banished from before, and second you’re not just hoping that they accept an alliance with Berk, you’re hoping they accept that you’re in love with their daughter.”</p><p>“And what would you have me do otherwise,” Hiccup replied, “just continue on in secret and hope they don’t find out. Or maybe I should just convince Merida to run away with me. How well do you think that would go over with them?” Eret nodded in understanding.</p><p>“I understand, Hic,” Eret replied, “all I’m saying is that if you go there without any kind of proof who’s to say they will believe you at all? Who’s to say they won’t just throw you in the dungeon on sight?”</p><p>“All the more reason for me to come forward sooner rather than later,” Hiccup replied, “if I want to be with Merida, then I need to pursue her the right way. How can I ever expect her parents to approve if I’m not open and honest with them from the start.” </p><p>“I get it Hic,” Eret replied, “I really do, but I urge you to handle this tactfully, otherwise it could blow up in your face.” </p><p>“I know what I’m doing Eret,” Hiccup replied firmly, “this is important to me, I want her parents to see my intentions are good. I don’t want them to just assume that I’m just some debaucher trying to seduce their daughter to get the throne. The longer I stay in hiding the higher the chance someone else may discover us and inform the King and Queen themselves. If that were to happen then there is no telling what they will think of me. I’d much rather throw myself on their mercy than be accused of trying to trick their daughter into choosing me, for my own gain.” Hiccup paused for a moment as he looked back and forth between Fish and Eret. He sighed heavily. </p><p>“Besides, if Merida’s parents accept me,” Hiccup continued, “then Merida would have nothing to fear, there would be nothing to hold her back from taking a-a real chance with me.”</p><p>“And what if they don't accept you,” Eret questioned, “I mean, what if you can’t win them over?”</p><p>“Well, I guess we will just have to cross that bridge if we come to it, “Hiccup replied, “but right now coming forward is my best option.”</p><p>“Okay then,” Eret replied, “so maybe we should get to work on this plan of yours then mate. Then when your princess comes by tomorrow we can get her take on it.” Hiccup nodded in agreement. </p><p>“First there are a few things Merida figured out about our mystery,” Hiccup replied glancing back and forth between Eret and Fish, “I’d like to run it all by you guys, and see what you think. I also convinced her to leave me her grandmother’s journal. Maybe we could compare her’s with my grandfather’s and see if there is anything we might have missed. </p><p>“Great,” Fish replied, “let’s get started then.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Taking a Leap of Faith</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 22</p><p>The next day </p><p>…<br/>Hiccup awoke groggily after a long restless night. Though he was glad he had finally admitted his feelings to Merida, the situation between them was still largely unsettled. Although he was fairly certain by her actions alone, that she did in fact feel something more for him, he still didn’t truly know exactly where he stood. He knew she was surprised by his admission, and perhaps the initial shock is what caused her fears to resurface in the wake of his confession. He only hoped that after she took the time to think things over that she would realize that she had nothing to fear, that they were simply meant to be and no matter what anyone said or did, he would fight for her and he would fight to be with her. If only she would just trust him with her heart, she could rest assured that he would never allow anything to come between them. Hiccup sighed heavily as he sat up from his place beside Toothless. He leaned forward and yawned as he stretched his arms over his head. He turned his eyes to Eret and Fishlegs who were already up and currently sitting by the fire eating their breakfast of roasted wild rabbit. Hiccup quickly strapped his prosthetic leg on and stood up carefully. He then headed over to the camp fire to join his friends. Fish legs smiled up at him when he noticed him sit down on a log across from them. </p><p>“Morning chief,” Fish greeted. </p><p>“Morning Fishlegs,” Hiccup yawned again as he spoke. Eret looked up at him and smirked. He furrowed his brow at the sight of his old friend. </p><p>“Did you have a rough night Hic,“ Eret questioned, “you look like you haven’t slept a wink.” Hiccup rolled his eyes at Eret’s comment. </p><p>“I just had a lot on my mind,“ Hiccup replied, “I just couldn’t shut my brain off, ya know.” Eret nodded in understanding. </p><p>“Oh, I know,” Eret replied, “I’ve had many a night like that, especially recently.” Eret shot Hiccup a knowing gaze. Hiccup nodded in return. </p><p>“Hey don't worry too much about it,” Eret replied, “I mean from all that you said, there is no question that Merida feels for you the way you do for her. Hiccup nodded again. </p><p>“I’m not that worried,” Hiccup replied, “not really. Well, I mean, I am a little worried, but not about Merida. I know she cares for me too. It’s everything else I’m worried about.” </p><p>“Like what exactly,” Eret questioned. Hiccup sighed heavily as he thought over Eret’s question. </p><p>“Like...whether or not her parents will ever accept me,” Hiccup replied, “or whether or not the Lords will approve of me, what her people will think if she chooses me. What will her people do when they find out I’m a Viking? Then of course everything else about this mystery has been driving me crazy. That and I keep thinking about everything Merida told me about what she discovered over the past three days.”</p><p>“Oh yeah, Fish replied, “what exactly did Merida find in the archives? Did she find out what Adag means?” Hiccup nodded his head in reply. </p><p>“Actually, she did not find much of anything in the archives,” Hiccup replied with a shrug, “but she did discover the meaning of Adag...with a little help from her brothers.” Eret turned to Hiccup in curiosity. </p><p>“She has brothers,” Eret questioned. Hiccup nodded as he turned his eyes to Eret. </p><p>“Three as a matter of fact,” Hiccup replied, “and from what I gather, they are identical triplets.” Eret raised his eyebrows in surprise. He was still very curious about Merida and her family, though he had not divulged his reasons why to anyone. He was still not entirely sure that his suspicions were something he should reveal to the others just yet, if at all. Despite his reluctance to investigate his alleged connection to this place, his curiosity about the royal family only grew the more he found out about them. </p><p>“Well,” Fish interrupted impatiently, “what did Merida say about Adag?” Eret and Hiccup turned back to Fish in slight amusement. Hiccup chuckled slightly.  </p><p>“Well, you were right,” Hiccup replied looking back and forth between Fish and Eret, “actually you were both right...well sort of anyway.” Both Fish and Eret looked back at him questioningly. </p><p>“Eret, you said you thought it was another word for Berk,” Hiccup reiterated, “and Fishlegs said it sounded like my last name, Haddock.”</p><p>“So how are we both right exactly,” Fish asked.<br/>“Okay so, Dunbroch has an ancient language called Gaelic,” Hiccup replied, “Gaelic is sort of like what Old Norse is to Berk.”</p><p>“Okay,” Eret replied, “so are you saying that Adag is Gaelic for Berk then?”</p><p>“Close,” Hiccup replied, “actually it turns out Adag is the Gaelic word for Haddock.”</p><p>“Are you kidding me,” Fish laughed, “that’s crazy, I was totally right.” Fish looked over at Eret smugly, “you were close but I was totally right! I knew it sounded like Haddock!” Eret rolled his eyes at Fish’s enthusiasm.</p><p>“And seeing as though a Haddock has always been chief of Berk,” Hiccup continued as he looked back at Eret, “then it’s somewhat safe to assume that Adag might refer to both Berk and my family line.” </p><p>“So, what does that mean exactly, I mean, in regards to the prophecy of Mairead though,” Fish questioned, “I mean, was she talking about your family in general...or maybe you specifically?”</p><p>“Well Merida says that I’m the first Haddock to set foot in Dunbroch in three hundred years,” Hiccup replied, “she’s convinced that Mairead”s words must pertain to me.” Hiccup sighed slightly as he spoke, giving Eret the impression that he was not entirely set on Merida’s conclusion.</p><p>“I mean it does make sense. Not only am I the first Haddock to return to Dunbroch, I’m also the last Haddock in my family line...for now anyway. So, it would seem that there really is no other explanation.” </p><p>“Something tells me you’re not exactly convinced that that is the case,” Eret replied. He gazed at Hiccup as he crossed his arms over his chest. Hiccup sighed. </p><p>“Well, the thing is, even though it really all does make sense,” Hiccup replied, “it feels like, I don’t know, it just sort of feels off a bit. I can’t really explain it, I just can’t help but to think that there is something more to the story than that.” Eret gazed at Hiccup curiously. </p><p>“Like what,” Fish questioned curiously.</p><p>“Well, just for instance, the dream I had,” Hiccup replied, “I mean there is a lot more to it than just Mairead’s prophecy, there is still so much of it that I haven’t figured out yet, ya know. Like the village itself for one, a-and the people living with dragons, and the tide glider symbol. Honestly, it all sort of gave me the impression that Adag was actually some ancient village in Dunbroch. Now that Merida found out that it actually means Haddock, she believes that the entire prophecy was just about me and my family line. I...I’m just not like a hundred percent convinced that there isn’t more to it than that and to be honest if it is really just about me and my family then that just leads me to even more questions than I had before.”  Eret thought heavily on Hiccup’s words.</p><p>“Well, maybe you’re right, maybe there is more to it than that,” Eret suggested, “I mean, what if both are true?” Hiccup furrowed his brow at Eret’s suggestion. </p><p>“How do you mean exactly,” Hiccup questioned. </p><p>“Adag is definitely the Gaelic word for Haddock,” Eret replied, “but could it be possible that Adag is also a village in Dunbroch?” Hiccup furrowed his brow as he thought carefully over Eret’s suggestion.</p><p>“Well, I, I guess it’s possible,” Hiccup replied thoughtfully, “but if that were the case than to which one is Mairead referring?”  </p><p>“Well, before you said that Berk was an ally of Dunbroch,”Eret replied. </p><p>“That’s right,” Fish replied as he assumed the direction of Eret’s train of thought, “in one of the entries in the journal, Mairead said that her father, the king, fought with the chief of Berk previously, it said they were old friends.”</p><p>“That’s right mate,” Eret replied, “so it’s safe to assume that Berk and Dunbroch were allies long before they came here for their dragon problem.” Hiccup nodded as he listened to his friends’ suggestions. </p><p>“And like you just said,” Fish chimed in, “a Haddock has always been chief of Berk.”</p><p>“Right,” Eret agreed, “so isn’t it possible that your family in particular has a much longer history in Dunbroch than just the incident between yours and her grandparents?” Hiccup silently pondered Eret’s question. </p><p>“Maybe they were even associated with a particular village in Dunbroch before they were banished,” Fish suggested, “I mean maybe even some Berkans had connections here in Dunbroch, or maybe even families. What if the banishment didn’t just separate Hiccup and Mairead, but other families as well? What if Berk and maybe even the Haddock’s specifically have family ties to Dunbroch.” Hiccup sat for a moment in silence as he thought over Fish’s suggestion. He had been completely focused on the relationship between Mairead and Hiccup the first that he had not considered the idea that Berk’s ties to Dunbroch could be much broader than he had previously believed. </p><p>“Only a Haddock will lead them home,” he muttered to himself as Mairead’s words once again replayed in his mind. Could this be what Mairead was referring to? Was he not only meant to renew the bond between their clans, but also to reunite the families inadvertently separated by the banishment?</p><p>“I guess that could be possible, I-I mean it certainly sounds plausible,” Hiccup replied as he thought about it, “but there are still so many details that just don’t quite add up. I mean there are still so many loose ends to this whole story.”</p><p>“What sort of loose ends,” Eret asked curiously. </p><p>“Well, like the other thing Merida learned from her parents yesterday,” Hiccup replied, “apparently all of Dunbroch believes that Berk was wiped out in a dragon raid shortly after they were banished, for one.”</p><p>“Wait, wait, wait,” Fish interrupted, “the people of Dunbroch think that all of Berk was wiped out by dragons?” </p><p>“You’re kidding right,” Eret replied in slight amusement. Hiccup gazed back at Eret with an unamused expression on his face. Eret furrowed his brow in surprise. “Okay you’re telling me that they actually believe that the very Vikings that literally rid their land of an entire population of dragons were then defeated and killed off by dragons,” Eret questioned skeptically.</p><p>“Crazy right,” Hiccup replied, “Merida’s theory is that her own great, great grandfather, uh Callum I think his name was, might have orchestrated the whole thing in order to keep Mairead for himself. </p><p>“Do you really think that this Callum lied on purpose,” Eret questioned, “I mean could it have been possible that he was just mistaken or maybe even misinformed?”</p><p>“Well, I don’t actually know for sure but I’m leaning more toward the idea that it was a deliberate lie,” Hiccup replied, “I mean think about it, by marrying Mairead, Callum was set to become the King of Dunbroch; my grandfather would have been a direct threat to his future as King.”</p><p>“So just lie then and say all of Berk was killed off,” Eret questioned, “it just seems a little far-fetched. I mean what was to stop someone from just coming back from Berk and proving him a liar?” Hiccup shrugged.</p><p>“Like I said,” Hiccup replied, “there is still a lot that doesn’t quite add up. Now I’m just speculating here but what I think what might have happened is that Callum may have found out about the affair between Hiccup and Mairead; maybe he even told the King and Queen about it, which than could have resulted in the banishment of Berk.”</p><p>“So, if he managed to have all of Berk banished, why go further and lie about their demise,” Fish questioned, “I mean, what would be the point?”</p><p>“Because of Mairead,” Hiccup replied, “there is no way she would have just given up on her true love simply because he was banished. She would have fought to be with him, maybe she even tried to have her betrothal dissolved and the banishment lifted.”</p><p>“But if she believed her true love was dead,” Fish replied, “she’d have no reason to contest her marriage to Callum.” </p><p>“Exactly,” Hiccup replied, “and not only that, but if Callum lied about Berk’s demise, who’s to say he didn’t also lie about the Berkans to get them banished in the first place.” Both Eret and Fish looked at Hiccup in intrigue. </p><p>“You may be on to something mate,” Eret replied. </p><p>“Yeah,” Fish chimed in, “this is huge, if you can legitimately prove that Callum lied to get Berk banished then the King will have no choice but to lift the banishment!”</p><p>“Well, i-it’s still a working theory though,” Hiccup replied, “I mean like I said before there are still few things that don’t quite add up. Not to mention how difficult it will be to prove.”</p><p>“Okay, well, what else doesn’t add up,” Eret questioned. </p><p>“Well according to Merida, all the records of Berk being in Dunbroch have been missing for years, even her father could not find anything in all his years of searching,” Hiccup explained. </p><p>“So,” Eret replied. </p><p>“So, explain this, the account of Berk in Dunbroch to hunt the dragons is just gone, vanished, practically nonexistent besides the journals of our grandparents,” Hiccup went on, “yet the account of Berk’s demise is well documented.” Both Eret and Fish furrowed their brows in thought as Hiccup spoke. </p><p>“It just doesn’t make sense, I mean it…it almost seems as though someone purposely removed the records; maybe even destroyed them. But why would someone do that,” Hiccup questioned, “unless, of course, they were attempting to hide the truth, or maybe they were trying to cover something up.” Both Fish and Eret seemed to think heavily on Hiccup’s words. </p><p>“Like the truth of Berk’s innocence,” Fish questioned. Hiccup nodded. </p><p>“So, basically you’re saying this Callum discovered the affair,” Eret concluded, “and to put a stop to it, he exposed the affair, maybe even lied about Hiccup the first’s intentions so that the king would banish all of Berk to prevent a scandal?”</p><p>“Basically,” Hiccup replied, “but maybe the banishment wasn’t enough to thwart Mairead from fighting to be with Hiccup. So, Callum took it a step further and lied about Berk being wiped out so she would give up.”</p><p>“Wow,” Fish replied.</p><p>“But the other thing that is also throwing me off is my great, great grandfather,” Hiccup replied, “it seems like he did the exact same thing in Berk, he hid everything that mentioned Dunbroch. I mean what exactly was Hiccup the first trying to hide?”</p><p>“Okay wait, you mean to say that you have reason to believe that your own great, great grandfather was also a part of this massive cover up,” Eret questioned curiously. Hiccup nodded. </p><p>“I don’t know for certain, but I’m definitely beginning to think so,” Hiccup replied, “what I can’t figure out is why? I can’t make sense of it; I mean why would he have ever gone along with it? Why would he knowingly break Mairead’s heart that way? Why would he just let Callum get away with such a terrible lie? I mean, if I’m right about this, that means that not only did my great great grandfather know that Callum lied to Mairead about his alleged death, but he actually conspired with him to make her believe the lie.”</p><p>“Conspired by going along with it,” Fish questioned. Hiccup shook his head.</p><p>“He might have been more involved than that,” Hiccup replied, “I mean I really don’t think that after the banishment that Mairead would have just taken Callum’s word that Hiccup was dead. I think that the only way she would have ever believed him was if he had legitimate proof. If that’s the case than there is no question that Hiccup was working with Callum. Hiccup had to have given Callum the proof he needed to convince Mairead that he was dead.. Why would he do that?”</p><p>“Unless, maybe he was trying to protect her somehow,” Eret suggested, “maybe breaking her heart was the lesser of two evils.”</p><p>“That’s what I thought too,” Hiccup replied, “but if Callum was willing to lie, and threaten Mairead, why would Hiccup just go along with that? Why didn’t he fight for her, or at the very least try to expose Callum? How could he just look the other way while Callum got everything he wanted? I mean clearly Callum must have been blackmailing Hiccup in some way, whether he knew something or threatened to reveal something or maybe it really was just a threat to hurt Mairead if he didn’t comply. I just know that there is something more to the story, something we are clearly missing.” </p><p>“Don’t forget Hic, your grandfather was also banished from Dunbroch at the time,” Eret replied, “I mean maybe there was little he could do. He couldn’t return and Callum held all the cards it sounds like.” Hiccup nodded as he thought over Eret’s suggestion. He could feel frustration building in his heart as he thought about what had allegedly happened between Hiccup the first and Callum. It was as if he could easily put himself in his grandfather’s place. He thought about how he felt about Merida. He was not typically one to rely on violence to solve problems but if anyone ever were to threaten Merida in such a way, he would not hesitate to fight for her. He would use whatever force necessary to protect her. He would risk everything for her. He simply could not understand why his grandfather would just give up instead of fighting for Mairead. </p><p>“I just don’t get it,” Hiccup replied, “I mean how could he just give up on her like that after everything they did, and every risk they took to be together, why would he just let her go? If how I felt in my dream about Mairead was truly how my grandfather felt about her; I just can’t fathom why he’d just stop fighting. If it were me, I…I’d never stop fighting, a-and I’d never give up, I’d fight for her till my last breath if I had to.”</p><p>“As would I in his shoes,” Eret replied, “but we weren’t there, we don’t know the situation he was in…maybe, as hard as it was to let her go, he did what he had to do to keep her safe.”  Hiccup nodded as he pondered Eret’s suggestion. </p><p>“It’s the only explanation really,” Hiccup replied thoughtfully, “but it still feels like we are missing something, something that could tie all of this together.” Hiccup sighed as he thought more about all Merida had told him.</p><p>“What exactly is Merida’s take on all this,” Eret questioned. </p><p>“I haven’t technically told her yet,” Hiccup replied, “I’ve just been thinking about all of it since last night. I’ll talk to her more about everything I’ve been thinking when she comes by this afternoon.”</p><p> </p><p>———————————————————————————————————————————<br/>Dunbroch castle</p><p> </p><p>Merida sat at the breakfast table quietly toying with her food and completely distracted by her thoughts. She paid no mind to her three brothers’ antics and barely listened to her father’s tales. She sighed heavily. All she could think about was that she still had hours of lessons ahead of her and all she wanted to do was spend more time with Hiccup. As much as she tried to push it to the back of  her mind, she kept replaying the moment he’d kissed her in her head. She could practically feel his lips on her’s still, they were soft and sweet, familiar and new all at once. It left her with butterflies in her stomach and her heart beat furiously at the memory. She sighed heavily as she tried to push the thoughts of him to the back of her mind. She didn’t know how she was going to get through this day. </p><p>“Is everything okay dear,” Elinor asked noticing her daughter’s odd behavior. Merida didn’t answer right away. </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor called. </p><p>“Huh,” Merida shook her head and looked up as she realized her mother was speaking to her, “what was that mum?”</p><p>“Yer awfully distracted dear,” Elinor replied, “is everything okay?”  </p><p>“I’m fine,” she replied, trying to hide the blush on her face, “I, uh, I j-just have a lot on my mind is all.” Elinor sighed in concern. Even though their relationship was better now, Merida still would fall back to her old habit of not always talking to her mother. After years of misunderstandings, Elinor had learned not to push her daughter. Merida would come to her in time if she couldn’t figure it out on her own.  But it seemed lately she was more distracted than ever and Elinor could not help but to wonder what was going on with her. More than anything she wished that Merida would just confide in her. </p><p>Elinor sighed slightly. Regardless of whatever was troubling Merida, she had yet to break the news to her about the proposal of the Lords and the impending courtship. It was a task she planned to do this morning, but now seemed to be second guessing. But with the Lords now coming within the week, there was no time to put it off any longer. Elinor glanced at her husband in uncertainty for a moment. Fergus nodded his head and gave her a reassuring smile. Elinor sighed once more and turned her attention back to Merida. </p><p>“Well,” Elinor sighed, “I’m afraid there is something I do need to discuss with ye Merida.” Despite her distraction, Merida noticed a twinge of worry in her mother’s voice.</p><p>“What now mum,” Merida questioned. Elinor glanced briefly at Fergus. He nodded reassuringly. Elinor sighed as she turned her attention back to Merida.</p><p>“Well, uh, as ye know, Lord Dingwall was here for a few days...not that long ago,” Elinor replied. </p><p>“Not another dragon sighting I hope,” Merida replied as she rolled her eyes. </p><p>“No…no, it’s nothin’ like that,” Elinor replied,” please just listen Merida, this is of great importance.” Merida looked at her mother curiously as her concern began to grow. </p><p>“Lord Dingwall, well he, uh, he came as representative of the other clans,” Elinor explained, “to discuss the matter of the future of Dunbroch. As it is, the future remains unsettled and the Lords have brought their concerns about that to our attention.” Merida furrowed her brow at her mother’s words. </p><p>“What do ye mean mum,” Merida questioned, “what of Dunbroch’s future concerns them so?”</p><p>“They are concerned that ye have not chosen a suitor yet,” Elinor replied, “that a successor to yer father has yet to be named.” Merida rolled her eyes and groaned. </p><p>“Seriously, why do the Lords seek to control my life,” Merida huffed, “I mean is it so terrible that I have yet to choose? What is their rush?”</p><p>“Ye must try to understand Merida,” Elinor replied, “this has ne’er been done before,  no princess has ever been granted the freedom ye have. The Lords are accustomed to their old ways and because of that they’ve grown impatient.”</p><p>“Well what do they expect me to do mum,” Merida questioned, “I….I want to make the right choice, but it takes time.” </p><p>“But in these past five years,” Elinor continued, “ye have put little effort into makin’ yer choice.”</p><p>“That’s because I’ve had little opportunity Mum,” Merida groaned. </p><p>“Be that as it may Merida, I urge ye to attempt to see things from the Lords’ perspective,” Elinor replied, “as a leader ye must learn to see things through yer subjects eyes not just yer own. In the Lords’ eyes ye are at the age that ye should at least be betrothed, if not married by now and the future King should be preparing to take the throne.”</p><p>“What exactly would they have me do mother,” Merida questioned, “just chose some random man, with little to no thought at all! All just to ensure a successor is properly prepared to sit on the my throne?” Elinor sighed as she tried her best to calmly explain. </p><p>“Actually, the Lords have put a bit of thought into this situation,” Elinor replied, “and they have proposed a solution.”</p><p>“A solution,” Merida questioned skeptically.</p><p>“Aye, it seems the Lords still hope ye will find favor with one of their sons.” Merida’s heart dropped to her feet with her mother’s words. The previous butterflies vanished instantly and became like a hollow pit in her stomach. </p><p>“What,“ Merida cried out, “yer still trying to marry me off to one o’ their sons! After everything we’ve been through!” </p><p>“Of course not,” Elinor replied firmly, “Yer father and I explained to Lord Dingwall that our decision is final, we’ll not go back on our word, that ye may choose for yerself, in yer own time.”</p><p>“Good,” Merida replied, “then there’s nothing else to discuss!”</p><p>“Not exactly,” Elinor replied. Merida groaned in frustration.</p><p>“Ye can’t be serious,” Merida looked to her father desperately, “tell me she’s nae serious!” </p><p>“Please just hear yer mother out lass,” Fergus replied solemnly. Merida could feel her anxiety growing. </p><p> “As I said, the Lords have expressed their concern,” Elinor continued, “that whoever ye choose not be worthy of the throne, and so they still want yer choice to be one of their sons.” Merida was beside herself with frustration.</p><p>“What is the point of having my own choice, mother,” Merida stood angrily from the table, “why would I choose someone who isn’t worthy? Do they really think so little of me? “</p><p>“I understand Merida,” Elinor replied, “I do...but ye must understand the position of the Lords as well.” Merida huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. </p><p>“Why must I worry about the position of the Lords,” Merida replied, “tis my life they seek  to control, why should their position hold more importance than my life!”</p><p>“Merida, the Lords don’t seek to control yer life, they simply want to ensure that a Scotsman remain on the throne,” Elinor replied. </p><p>“Well, ye can tell them a Scotsmen will remain on the throne,” Merida exclaimed, “ME!” Elinor sighed. </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor continued, “they only ask that ye allow their sons a chance at least...a chance to woo ye and try to win yer heart.” Merida shuddered at the thought. </p><p>“This is ridiculous,” Merida huffed, “I’ll not stand for it!” </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor replied, “please calm down, and listen to reason.”</p><p>“Ye can’t be serious mother,” she exclaimed, “just when I thought I had my freedom to make my own choice! Ye gave me yer word!” Merida looked back and forth between her parents, “ye both did, and now ye plot with the Lords who seek to take it from me.”</p><p>“Honestly Merida, ye are making a mountain out of a mole hill,” Elinor replied, “they merely want their sons to have the chance to win yer love before yer hand.”</p><p>“Love mother,” Merida huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest, “what does any of this have to do with love? They don’t care how I feel at all, they just want one of their spoiled whiney sons to be on the throne!” </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor replied, “we are only asking ye to appease the Lords and allow their sons a chance. We aren’t plotting with the Lords; the choice is still yers. We are just asking ye to allow them to court ye. I mean who knows, maybe if ye get to know them better, ye may truly find love with one of them. Ye can’t know for sure until ye try.” </p><p>“Oh, I know alright,” Merida huffed. </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor replied, “I was betrothed before I even knew yer father and I was afraid I’d be stuck for life with a man I did nae love. But yer father and I found love together, and the love we found only grows stronger to this day. Had I not allowed him the chance to prove himself that wouldn’t have happened. I mean at the very least ye may learn to love who ye chose as time goes on.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m certain that will ne’er happen to me,” Merida replied firmly, “certainly not with one of them!” Elinor sighed in frustration. </p><p>“Merida, I know you want yer freedom,” Elinor replied, “but ye can’t close yer heart off to love itself forever out of stubborn pride!” Merida could feel tears of frustration building up in her eyes as she glared at her mother.</p><p>“It’s not about my pride mother,” Merida argued, “don’t ye understand? This is not what I want mum.” </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor started. </p><p>“I...I don’t want to learn to love someone, Mum. I want real love,” Merida pleaded, “the kind that makes yer heart race, and yer palms sweat. I…I want to find someone who sees me for who I am and loves me just as I am. I want the feeling of butterflies in my gut when he kisses me. I want to feel safe and warm in his arms. A-and when he holds me, I want to feel like I am right where I was always meant to be. I...I want....I want…true love....” Merida blushed slightly when she realized that all the things she had said were about Hiccup. All at once she knew, all she had ever wanted she’d found in Hiccup. Hiccup’s words from one of their previous conversations suddenly flashed through her mind.<br/>...<br/>“All I’m trying to say is there is more to life than just being queen. You shouldn’t have to choose between leading your people and being happy,” Hiccup went on, “and, I mean, so what if the Lords don’t approve, I’m sure there would be a way around that, even if you have to fight for it. Isn’t love worth fighting for?”<br/>….<br/>She knew in this moment that Hiccup was right. Love was worth fighting for. Hiccup believed that she was worth fighting for. If what was happening between them would amount to anything, she had to be willing to do the same. She could not hold back because of her fear. She had to jump in with two feet, and fight for the love she knew she had found in Hiccup. She was more determined than ever before. She had finally found where she had always belonged and she would be damned if anything or anyone would try to take this away from her. Elinor was taken aback by her daughter’s sudden outburst and surprised by her passionate plea. </p><p>Unbeknownst to Merida and her parents, Hubert, Harris and Hamish had begun to put two and two together. They glanced at each other curiously as the argument ensued. They couldn’t help but to feel for their sister’s plight and they could not help but to wonder if the boy she had told them about was in fact the object of her affections. </p><p>“Merida I....I’m sorry,” Elinor replied, “truly I am.” She paused for a long moment. “I promise ye, tis not my intention to take yer choice from ye.” She gazed at her daughter in sympathy. She wished she could take this burden from her daughter’s shoulders. </p><p>“But we still must appease the Lords for now,” Elinor said firmly, “we must go through with this. The Lords and their son’s will be here in a week’s time and we must prepare for their arrival.” Merida clenched her fists in anger and hurt as she gazed at her mother. She could feel tears welling up in her eyes and her heart felt heavy. </p><p>“As I said,” Elinor went on, “the choice will still be yers in the end, I promise ye, but in the meantime...”</p><p>“In the meantime,” Merida huffed, “I’ll be forced to play nice with the Lord’s sons!“ </p><p>“Look, Merida,” Elinor replied, “I know this is a lot we ask of ye, but tis necessary to appease the Lords. Just think about it okay. We can skip your lessons today if ye’d like, I know ye have a lot to think about.” Merida stood silently gazing at the floor as her mother spoke, trying her best to hold the tears back from falling from her eyes. She was worried before about this happening, it was the very reason she had never wanted to let herself fall in love. It was the very reason she guarded her heart as she did. Now just as she had let down her guard, just as she had begun to feel for Hiccup, the Lords were threatening to take her freedom to chose her own path away. The worst part was that her own parents were forcing her to go along with it. </p><p>“Merida,” Elinor said, “It will all be alright….I promise ye…</p><p>“Stop,” Merida snapped, “nothing ye say can make this alright!” With that Merida turned and ran quickly from the room. Elinor sighed heavily as she watched her daughter disappear through the dining hall doors. Her heart felt heavy with guilt and frustration. Fergus came up beside her and gently rested his hand upon her shoulder. As Elinor turned to face him, she noticed her sons gazing up at her in worry. Elinor sighed slightly at the sight. </p><p>“Ye three may be excused,” Elinor said, “go on, I need to speak to yer father.” The three boys scampered quickly from the table and ran through the doors of the dining hall. <br/>Elinor once again turned to her husband with a saddened expression on her face. </p><p>“Are we doing the right thing Fergus,” Elinor questioned. </p><p>“We are doing what we must to appease the Lords as ye said,” Fergus replied. </p><p>“Aye,” Elinor replied, “but at what cost to Merida.”<br/>———————————————————————————————————————————-<br/>Hiccup’s camp</p><p>“Okay,” Fish said, “let’s just try to go through this again in order.” Hiccup nodded. </p><p>“So, Dunbroch and Berk were allies,” Fish began to list the facts of the mystery, “the king and the chief were old friends. Dunbroch had a dragon problem and called on Berk to help hunt the dragons. Mairead was betrothed to Callum the third. Mairead and Hiccup the first met and fell in love. They had an affair despite her betrothal. We don’t really know that much between the time they fell in love and the time Berk was banished.”</p><p>“I think  there is a pretty good possibility that Callum found out about the affair,” Hiccup replied, “and he could have had a role in the banishment.”</p><p>“Right,” Fish replied, “and somewhere in that time frame Hiccup and Mairead also cast a binding spell, we think because they were being separated by the banishment.” Hiccup nodded in agreement. </p><p>“Then shortly after,” Fish continued, “the Vikings left Dunbroch, and were never seen or heard from again. A little after that  Berk was allegedly wiped out by dragons, which we know for certain is a lie.”</p><p>“A lie told by Callum,” Hiccup added. </p><p>“Right,” Fish replied, “but also a lie that your great, great grandfather may have gone along with...possibly to protect Mairead.”</p><p>“Right well it seems like a pretty good timeline,” Eret replied, “but how exactly does that prophecy of Mairead fit into all of this?”</p><p>“Right,” Fish replied, “first we have to figure out exactly what it means. So far we know that Adag is haddock, which may refer to a village or Hiccups family, or even Hiccup himself.”</p><p>“Or all of the above,” Hiccup added. </p><p>“So basically, we are still stuck in the same place we were before,” Eret replied. </p><p>“At least until we figure it out or get more clues,” Fish replied. </p><p>“All the more reason for me to meet Merida’s parents,” Hiccup replied, “if I can look through the archives we may find something more.” </p><p>“And how exactly do you intend to find anything in the archives if all the records of Berk are missing,” Eret questioned.</p><p>“By not looking for records on Berk at all,” Hiccup replied. Eret furrowed his brow in confusion. </p><p>“Merida searched the entire history of the time Berk would have been involved with Dunbroch and found nothing, but maybe if we search after we could have more luck. What I really want to look at are the records after Callum married Mairead, after he was King.”</p><p>“What exactly do you hope to find,” Eret questioned. </p><p>“I don’t know,” Hiccup replied, “but at the very least it may show the kind of person he was, maybe even show what he was capable of.” Eret nodded. </p><p>“You should probably search before too,” Fish interceded. Hiccup turned his attention back to Fish with a curious expression. </p><p>“In case Eret is right,” Fish replied, “that Berk has a longer history with Dunbroch than we thought.” Hiccup nodded in agreement.</p><p>“Well, for now we should get back to the journals,” Hiccup replied, “to see if there is anything we may have missed.” </p><p>“Right,” Fish agreed,” I’ll look through your grandfather’s and you go through Mairead’s.” Hiccup nodded in agreement. The two immediately immersed themselves in the journals. </p><p>“Right,” Eret said flatly, “I guess I’ll just…tend to the dragon’s then.”<br/>————————————————————————————————————————-<br/>Dunbroch castle</p><p> </p><p>Elinor entered the study and sighed heavily as she sat in the cushioned chair across from Fergus. Fergus looked from his reading and glanced at her curiously. </p><p>“Did ye find her, dear,” he asked. Elinor sighed again. </p><p>“No, she’s already left the castle,” Elinor replied, “she must have headed out right after she stormed out o’ the dining hall. I don’t expect we will see her the rest o’ the day.” Fergus put his book down and gazed at his wife. </p><p>“Try not to worry dear,” Fergus replied, “she just needs to blow off some steam is all.”</p><p>“How can I not worry Fergus,” Elinor replied, “you know what happened the last time she ran off like this.”</p><p>“Aye, I think she’s learned her lesson since then dear,” Fergus replied. </p><p>“I know,” she sighed, “but I can’t help but worry, she was so upset and…and hurt. She looked at me as if I’d completely betrayed her.”</p><p>“Come now, dear,” he replied, “ye worry about her the most of the lot of them. She will be fine. Ye will see, just give her some time to think is all.”</p><p>“It’s only because I’m preparing her for her duties as queen that I worry so,” Elinor replied, “and I know we’ve come a long way since the bear incident but sometimes it feels like she still keeps me at arms length. Now I’ve just made it worse with this debacle with the lords.” </p><p>“Well, maybe it’s time to let go a little,” Fergus replied, “she’s not a wee lass, anymore, she’s a lady, practically ready to take the throne.” Elinor pondered her husbands words. </p><p>“She’s strong and determined,” Fergus went on, “and she has her own mind. She knows what she wants dear. Maybe it’s ye and I that should start to listen.” Elinor nodded as she thought heavily on Fergus’ words. </p><p>“We’ve prepared her well, Elinor,” Fergus went on, “maybe it’s time we step back and let her have some control of her life and let her make some of her own decisions. Maybe we should just trust that we taught her well, and that she’ll  make the right ones. “ Elinor sighed heavily as she thought over all Fergus had said. </p><p>“I think your right Fergus,” Elinor replied. </p><p>“I am,” Fergus questioned, “Uh I mean, I am...of course  I am. “ Elinor chuckled.  </p><p>“The only problem is the Lords will be here within the week,” Elinor replied, “fully expecting their sons to court Merida.”</p><p>“And they shall,” Fergus replied, “but I’ll not force her to make a choice if it’s not what she wants. We just need to explain it better so she fully understands the situation.” </p><p>“So long as we can get Merida to actually listen to us,” Elinor replied. Fergus chuckled. </p><p>“Aye,” he replied, “just let her cool down. When she returns I’m sure we can sit her down and get her to listen to reason.”</p><p>“I hope yer right,” Elinor replied. She turned and started to walk to the study door but she paused before exiting. She turned back to Fergus with a curious look on her face. </p><p>“I do wonder though,” Elinor replied. </p><p>“What’s that, dear,” Fergus questioned. </p><p>“All that talk about love earlier,” Elinor replied, “Merida was so oddly specific...it almost sounded like...like she may be in love already. She has been spending a lot of time away from the castle lately...do you think she’s spending time with a boy?” </p><p>“Well, if she is,” Fergus replied, “let’s pray he’s not a spoiled cad like the lords sons.” Elinor rolled her eyes. </p><p>“What,” Fergus asked defensively. Elinor shook her head. “I just want Merida to be happy dear,” Fergus replied, “I know she won’t be happy with any of those spoiled lads.”</p><p>“I swear it Fergus,” Elinor replied, “she takes after ye the most.” </p><p>“Good,” he replied, “then you need not worry. She’s strong, smart and she won’t back outta a fight.”</p><p>“Aye, ye forgot stubborn dear,” Elinor replied. </p><p>“Aye and stubb...hey!” Fergus replied. Elinor chuckled.<br/>————————————————————————————————————————<br/>Hiccup’s camp</p><p> </p><p>Hiccup sat by the fire reading through more of Mairead’s journal, though he was finding it extremely hard to concentrate. His mind kept drifting back to Merida and the kiss they shared. All he wanted was to spend more time with her; the fact that it would be hours before he could see her only made him that much more impatient. Despite all his efforts to keep himself occupied; he was completely distracted. He sighed in frustration and tried to focus on his reading once again. After a few more minutes of trying in vain to read. Hiccup closed the book in frustration. He looked up at Eret who was sitting nearby with his back leaned up against the trunk of a tree eating an apple. Eret looked over at Hiccup in concern. </p><p>“Everything okay mate,” Eret asked. Hiccup sighed in frustration as he stood up and stirred the wood of the fire with a stick. </p><p>“I’m fine,” Hiccup replied, “just a little anxious I guess.” Eret sat forward and gazed up at Hiccup as he took another bite of his apple. </p><p>“About what exactly,” Eret questioned. Hiccup sighed once more as he ran his fingers through his hair. He tossed the stick into the flames and sat back down upon the log beside it. </p><p>“I’m just, I’m having a hard time focusing when all I can think about is…is Merida and how I feel a-and how she feels, or doesn’t feel,” Hiccup replied, “and the fact that it’s still really up in the air with her if that makes sense.” Eret nodded as he listened. </p><p>“I mean, I know she cares,” Hiccup continued, “it’s just a matter of her deciding to take a chance with me or not. I just wish she could have given me some form of an answer. I mean am I being selfish?”</p><p>“Look there is nothing wrong with wanting an answer,” Eret replied, “I know you want to give her all the time and space she needs, mate, but where does that leave you?” Hiccup groaned as he thought about it. </p><p>“What choice do I have otherwise,” Hiccup questioned in frustration, “I understand her hesitance, I really do. I mean I know why she’s afraid. How can I be selfish and push her for an answer? I mean, it’s bad enough that she has her parents, and the lords putting pressure on her about who she can and can’t marry just so she can take the throne. I’m not going to put pressure on her about this too!”</p><p>“Look Hic, it’s not selfish to want to know where you stand mate,” Eret replied. Hiccup sighed again. </p><p>“Look at it this way,” Eret continued, “when you met Merida, you had a lot of your own issues with love and trust yourself. Because of her you’ve worked through a lot of them, enough so that you are actually willing to take a chance with her. I mean, you put yourself out there with her mate; shouldn’t she be willing to do the same?” Hiccup averted his eyes as he thought over Eret’s words. Even though he knew Merida truly cared for him, the fact that she had mostly left him without a definitive or even a partial answer was somewhat disheartening. He was ready and willing to put everything on the line for her. He was willing to fight for her if need be, in the hope that they could be together. But Merida was still holding back. Although he understood her fears, his only wish was that she would trust that he would never hurt her, and trust that he would never stop fighting for her regardless of the situation with her parents or the Lords. As far as he was concerned she was the one he’d been looking for his whole life, and if she were willing to trust him with her heart, he would not let anything or anyone to ever come between them. </p><p>Suddenly they were distracted by the distinct sound of hooves striking the ground, and headed in their direction. Hiccup’s heart froze at the sound and he anxiously looked up in the direction from which the sound had come. He furrowed his brow in concern.</p><p>“Could that be your girl, Hic,” Eret questioned teasingly. </p><p>“It’s too early,” Hiccup muttered, “she’s not supposed to come til later.”</p><p>“Well maybe she managed to get out of her duties,” Fish suggested as he came up beside the others. Hiccup glanced at Fish briefly then turned his eyes back to the path ahead. </p><p>“Or maybe it’s one of her brothers,” Hiccup responded. </p><p>“One of her brothers,” Eret questioned. </p><p>“Uh, Merida sort of told them about me after they saw her sneaking out yesterday to leave my letter,” Hiccup replied. Eret turned to Hiccup in concern. </p><p>“Seriously,” Eret replied, “did you plan on mentioning that some time today?”</p><p>“Sorry, I forgot about it til now, “ Hiccup replied.</p><p>“Well, what do we do,” Eret questioned. </p><p>“Relax,” Hiccup replied, “their just kids, I think we will manage, they probably are just protective of their sister. They probably just want to be sure I’m not a bad person.” </p><p>“Yeah, but Hic…” Eret began. But Hiccup’s attention was stolen by the sight of the massive black horse and tiny rider that came barreling through the trees in their direction. Eret’s eyes widened slightly at the sight of her, she was absolutely beautiful and Hiccup’s brief description did her little justice. </p><p>“Not bad mate,” Eret smirked, “you weren’t kidding when you said she was beautiful.”  But Hiccup did not answer Eret. He was focused on Merida, he noticed immediately the look of distress on her face. </p><p>“Something is wrong,” Hiccup muttered. Eret looked back at him in concern.<br/>Merida brought the horse to a halt a few feet in front of them and Hiccup quickly walked over to meet her. As he approached the horse he looked up at Merida in concern.</p><p>“I didn’t expect to see you so early today,” Hiccup called. “is everything okay?”<br/>She looked down at him from Angus with a worried expression upon her face. </p><p>“No,” she replied simply, “it’s not.” She quickly dismounted Angus and headed in Hiccup’s direction. Without a word she leaned into his arms as tears of frustration filled her eyes. He held her close to him allowing her to take comfort in his arms. It was the first time he’d ever seen her so upset and the sight of her blue eyes filled with tears broke his heart. Hiccup looked up at Eret who stood just behind Merida. He gave him a pleading expression and nodded his head subtly to the left. Eret immediately understood and elbowed Fish. </p><p>“What,” Fish complained. Eret just gave him an impatient look. Fish furrowed his brow in slight confusion. Eret groaned. </p><p>“Let’s give them a moment to talk Fish,” Eret said impatiently.</p><p>“Oh, uh, yeah,” Fishlegs nodded in realization. Eret rolled his eyes and pushed him forward. After the two of them backed away, Hiccup turned his attention back to Merida. </p><p>“Hey,” Hiccup said as he took her face in his hands, “look at me Merida.” She turned her tear-filled eyes to him. </p><p>“What’s going on,” he asked. She shook her head as she tried to control her emotions.  </p><p>“Talk to me Merida,” Hiccup said softly. </p><p>“It’s my mother,” Merida replied as she pulled away from him, “she told me the reason for Lord Dingwall’s visit before.” Hiccup’s heart froze in his chest as he anticipated her bad news. Merida began to pace in front of him while trying her best to hold back the tears that threatened to fall from her blue eyes. </p><p>“It seems the lords still want me to choose one of their sons to wed, even though the choice is mine to make,” Merida explained, “apparently, I’m only free to make my own choice if that choice is one of them!” Hiccup’s heart sank as he pondered her words. </p><p>“But your parents promised you that you could choose for yourself,” Hiccup replied, “in your own time.”</p><p>“Aye,” Merida replied, “my parents gave me my freedom, but it seems the Lords never intended to do so. According to my mother the Lords have little trust in my judgement. This is their way to ensure a Scotsman who they deem worthy of the crown remain on the throne.” Hiccup fell silent as he thought over their predicament. </p><p>“My mother says she’ll stand by my choice, whatever it be,” Merida went on, ”but she’s still forcing me to go along with this whole bloody mess! She thinks I’m being stubborn, that I’m purposely closing my heart out of pride. She insists that I could find love with one of the suitors if I just give them a chance to win my heart.” Merida continued to pace as she spoke. </p><p>“Merida...” </p><p>“This isn’t about love at all! Why can’t she understand that? They dinnae care how I feel', ”Merida continued to rant, her face reddened in frustration, “none o' those spoiled whining sel rite oot wee lads care aboot me, they dinnae want mah heart, they want my throne!”</p><p>“Merida...”</p><p>“They can’t do this to me, they can’t make me,” Merida yelled,  “my heart is mine to give. Tis my heart, tis my choice! I cannae just give it away when I’ve already made my choice!”</p><p> “Made your choice,” Hiccup questioned, “Merida...what are you saying?”<br/>She paused and gazed up at him with sorrow-filled eyes. As she gazed at him, she was suddenly overcome with her emotions. The tears she had been desperately holding back began to involuntarily spill from her eyes. Hiccup’s heart nearly broke at the sight, he quickly pulled her into his arms and held her close. She lay her head on his chest simply allowing him to comfort her. Hiccup gently ran his fingers through her long tangled curls, trying his best to calm her. </p><p>“I swear...I’ll not let this happen,” she sobbed. </p><p>“Hey...hey,” Hiccup whispered soothingly, “it’s okay, we’ll figure this out...I promise.” Merida continued to sob into his chest. </p><p>“What if we can’t,” Merida lamented,” what if there is no way out of this...what if...”</p><p>“Don’t worry,” he soothed, “this doesn’t change any thing, okay. I promise I’m not going anywhere.” Merida nodded her head against his chest as her tears subsided. Hiccup gently lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. He smiled softly. As he gazed at her, he gently wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumb. </p><p>“I told you,” he said reassuringly, “I’m in this, no matter what, and nothing is going to change that.” Merida nodded. Without thinking he leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead gently.  He pulled back slowly gazing deeply into her eyes, feeling more determined than ever to confess all his feelings to her.”</p><p>“Merida,” he said softly, “I...I think...” He took a deep breath before continuing, “I mean, I told you I had feelings for you, but I…I feel like...I...”As he gazed into her piercing sky-blue eyes, he became extremely nervous. His heart was racing and his mouth felt suddenly dry. Despite his sudden nervousness, he pressed on. </p><p>“Okay look, I...I know this all may seem sudden a-and crazy a-and unexpected; a-and you don’t have to say anything back, I swear, but I think,” he sighed heavily before continuing, “I think I know what my feelings for you are. I just...I didn’t want to say it yet because I wasn’t sure how you’d take it, a-and maybe I was also a little afraid. But now with what’s happening with the Lords and these suitors, I...I just feel like I need to tell you. I mean I just want to know where we stand too. But mostly  I just want you to know how I really feel about you, I mean us, I mean, assuming there is an us.” Merida’s heart seemed to freeze mid beat as she anxiously anticipated his words. </p><p>“What is it,” Merida questioned as she gazed up at him nervously. Hiccup closed his eyes for a moment as he tried to muster up his courage to continue. He took a deep breath as he tried to find the right words. As he opened his eyes and looked back into her beautiful eyes once more, his thoughts became suddenly clear. He simply couldn’t deny it anymore. </p><p>“I...I need you to know that I...I think,” he gulped slightly before continuing, “what I mean is I, uh, I’m fairly certain that I’m falling in love with you, or…or I am already...I think...I...” He was unexpectedly interrupted by Merida’s lips crashing against his own. Hiccup was surprised at first and it took a few moments before what she had done registered in his mind. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned into the kiss. He could feel his heart racing, as he was overcome by a feeling like lighting in his veins when he held her close against him. She pulled away slowly and gazed up at him. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her face displayed a look of amazement. He wondered if she had felt the same thing he had. He gazed back into her blue eyes but kept his arms tight around her waist. He smiled slightly as he reached up to brush the red curls from her face.   </p><p>“I…I think I love ye too Hiccup,” she said softly. Hiccup’s heart nearly leapt from his chest with her words. He gazed into her sky-blue eyes as he leaned his forehead against hers. </p><p>“You do,” he questioned in surprise. Merida nodded.</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“Aye,” Merida nodded again as she gazed up at him.</p><p>“B-but yesterday,” Hiccup began, “y-you didn’t...I...I mean when I kissed you....you pulled away. I...I thought...”</p><p>“I told ye, I was afraid,” Merida replied emotionally. Merida pulled away from him and began to pace as she tried to explain. “I mean, I only just met ye, I was having feelings for ye that I...I didn’t understand. I...I mean I’ve never been in love before, so I didn’t know what I was feeling. But every time ye look at me my heart races and it feels like there are a thousand butterflies in my gut and I get so nervous I can’t think straight, but I thought it couldn’t be love. I-I tried to ignore it, and I tried not to think about it but then ye kissed me yesterday and that just turned everything on it’s head! I didn’t expect ye to kiss me, and when ye did, it...it felt like lighting struck my heart,” she said as she laid her hand over her heart. Hiccup smiled slightly as she described her feelings that were nearly identical to his own.</p><p> “When ye kissed me I just couldn’t ignore the feelings anymore,” Merida continued, “and then ye told me how ye felt and I couldn’t believe ye were saying such things to me. The way ye spoke, every word ye said...ye felt like I did. But everything was happening so fast...I-I was afraid and I just didn’t know what to do or say,” she paused as she gazed up at him, “but I know how I feel.” Hiccup smiled warmly in her direction, his heart nearly bursting as she spoke. </p><p>“This morning when my mother told me about the suitors,” Merida dropped her eyes slightly from his, “all I could think about was ye and how ye make me feel. All I could think about was that everything I ever wanted…I found in ye Hiccup.” She paused a moment as she looked up at him, gazing deep into his forest green eyes, eyes so similar to the ones that had plagued her dreams.</p><p>“When my mother said I could learn to love one of the suitors if I tried. I...I just knew it wasn’t possible,” Merida went on, “I knew I could never learn to love another… because I…I already love ye Hiccup. My heart already made my choice for me.”<br/>Hiccup reached out and took her hand gently in his. He leaned closer to her and smiled at her lovingly. </p><p>“I felt the same way,” Hiccup replied, “I kept trying to tell myself, I was crazy, that I couldn’t possibly be feeling what I was feeling...about a girl I only just met.” He took a deep breath before continuing. </p><p>“Love was the last thing I ever expected to find here,” Hiccup replied, “but then I met you and I…I was just...I was drawn to you like a magnet. I...I tried to rationalize it, I told myself it was only because you looked so much like the picture in the journal. Or because you remind me so much of the woman in my dream. I tried to tell myself I was just infatuated with you. But the more I get to know you, the stronger my feelings become.”  He paused a moment to sort his thoughts. </p><p>“Before yesterday, I...” Hiccup went on, “I had already begun to realize what I was feeling for you, I even tried to tell you that night on your balcony before your mom interrupted.” Merida smiled up at him. </p><p>“I knew it was something important,” she replied, “why didn’t you tell me when I asked what you were going to say yesterday?” </p><p>“I don’t know,” Hiccup stammered, “I…I was nervous, you put me on the spot. I was trying to ease into the subject yesterday a-and when you just asked me straight out I…I froze!” </p><p>“All this time I kept questioning myself,” Merida replied, “I thought it was all in my head, I thought ye only saw me as a friend.” Hiccup smiled at her warmly. </p><p>“I literally thought the same thing about you,” Hiccup replied, “that’s why I was so nervous to tell you from the start.” He reached up and gently tucked the unruly curls behind her ear as he gazed at her. </p><p>“But then yesterday, when you said what you said about how you felt when I looked at you; I mean, when I thought there could be even a small chance that you could possibly feel like I do, I...I just I couldn’t fight it anymore. I love you Merida, and all I want is to just be with you. I’ve wanted to kiss you since the moment Toothless knocked you into my arms that first day,” he chuckled lightly. Merida smiled up at him warmly at his admission.</p><p>“And then yesterday in the glen I...I just couldn’t hold back anymore. When I kissed you it was like all my confusion about you and how I feel was just gone. I knew it that instant, somehow, you and I are meant to be. There is no question in my mind, you are the one I was always meant to find.” Merida just gazed up at him with tear filled eyes. </p><p>“You are amazing Merida,” he said softly, “and beautiful inside and out, and...you’re everything I’ve always wanted.” She smiled as a blush crept over her cheeks. Hiccup leaned forward once again pressing his lips softly to her’s. She could feel his arms gently wrap around her as he deepened the kiss. This time his kiss was filled with all the passion and longing he’d been feeling since the day they met. She snaked her arms around his neck and gently ran her fingers through his messy hair. </p><p>The way Hiccup felt with her in his arms was indescribable; It was unlike anything he’d ever felt before and yet it felt like he’d finally found his way home after years of wandering. His heart was bursting, and every fiber of his being longed only to be closer to her. He pulled her closer to him griping the fabric of the back of her dress tightly in his fingers and kissed her more hungrily causing her to moan slightly. He pulled away reluctantly when the need for air overtook him and he smiled against her lips. </p><p>“My heart is yours Merida,” Hiccup whispered. “and always will be.” He gently caressed her face as he gazed deeply into her eyes, “I will wait forever if you’d be mine.” As Merida gazed back into his intense green eyes, his words struck her suddenly. Her mind instantly flashed back to the Viking from her dream. <br/>....</p><p>Mairead," he said, "my heart is your's and always will be." Slowly he raised his other hand and gently touched the side of her face brushing the unruly curls behind her ear. He continued to gaze at her with an intense longing emanating from his deep green eyes. He slowly leaned forward keeping his eyes locked with hers.<br/>"I will wait forever if you'd be mine," he said.<br/>...</p><p>She gazed up at Hiccup in sudden realization. <br/>“It’s ye,” she said in disbelief. Hiccup looked at her in confusion. </p><p>“It’s ye,” Merida repeated in amazement and surprise, “in my dream...the Viking in my dream. I..I thought it was yer great great grandfather calling to my great great nana, but somehow...it’s ye!” Hiccup gazed at her in surprise and confusion. </p><p>“Don’t you see,” Merida exclaimed, “Yer green eyes, the way ye look at me, the words ye just said...it…it’s all the same!” She laid her hand gently upon his face and gazed deep into his eyes. “Hiccup...it’s ye,” she said softly, “It’s always been ye! It’s been ye all this time! How did I not see it before?” As Hiccup pondered her revelation, his mind flashed suddenly to his own dream. <br/>...<br/>The woman lifted one of her hands and placed it gently upon his cheek, causing his breath to catch in his throat. <br/>“It’s you,” she whispered, “it’s always been you, it’s been you all this time.”<br/>...<br/>“That’s what she meant,” he said in surprise, “she…she said what you said.” They gazed at each other for a long moment in shock and amazement. </p><p>Hiccup thought back to the moment he and Merida met, her uncanny resemblance to her great nana, the familiar feeling he couldn’t explain, the feelings that struck him when he first kissed her were the same as when the woman in the dream touched his hand. He thought about the similar feelings he had for both Mairead and Merida that he could not explain and her blue eyes that looked so much like Mairead’s. Could the woman from his dream have been Merida all this time? Had everything been leading them to find…each other?  </p><p>“How is this possible,” Hiccup questioned. </p><p>“I don’t know,” Merida replied, “but maybe it has to do with the spell.” Hiccup furrowed his brow as he thought over her statement. He was fairly certain that the spell their grandparents had cast might be responsible for each of their recurring dreams, or even perhaps it was the reason he had felt so drawn to Dunbroch from the start. He had even long suspected that the feelings he felt in his dreams for Mairead were somehow influenced by his grandfather, but could it also be the reason he was so drawn to Merida? Was the fact that they had each separately dreamed this shared moment weeks before they ever met proof that somehow magic from a nearly three hundred year old spell had brought them together. And if so, what exactly did that mean for he and Merida? We’re they simply drawn together because the souls of their grandparents had manipulated their feelings? Hiccup shook his head at the thought; he absolutely refused to believe that the way he felt for Merida was in any way influenced by their grandparents’ spell. He refused to even consider the idea that his love for her was not of his own free will.</p><p>“No,” Hiccup replied firmly as he gazed at her, “I don’t believe that! My feelings for you are real, and they’re mine; they’re not just a-a side affect of some spell.”</p><p>“I’m not sayin’ our feelings aren’t real Hiccup,” Merida replied, “but think about it, I mean, something drew ye to Dunbroch in the first place.” Hiccup dropped his eyes to the ground and shook his head in denial as she spoke. </p><p>“Ever since the moment we discovered our grandparents mystery, we have talked about the spell being the reason for everything that led ye here, including the dreams that have plagued us,” Merida continued, “if it was by fate that we met, but it was magic that led ye, then who’s to say that fate and magic aren’t one in the same? It’s possible our fate has been intertwined from the start because of the spell but that doesn’t make how we feel any less real.”</p><p>Hiccup furrowed his brow in contemplation as he thought over all she had said. He couldn’t deny the possible role the spell had played in their meeting, nor could he explain their seemingly prophetic dreams; but he was certain that no explanation could change how he felt for Merida. He loved her truly and deeply and as far as he was concerned that would never change. Perhaps how they had come to be, whether it be by fate or by magic was of little importance. The only thing that mattered to him was that they were together now. Hiccup turned his eyes back to her and gazed at her with such intensity and longing that it made Merida shiver slightly and she couldn’t help but to be reminded of the Viking in her dream. She stepped closer to him as she reached up and gently lay her hand upon his stubbled cheek. She gazed up at him lovingly causing Hiccup’s heart to race.</p><p>“We dreamed of each other before we even met Hiccup,” Merida continued, “how else can ye explain that?”   </p><p>“I…I don’t know,” Hiccup answered as he gazed back at her, “I…I mean, I can’t explain it, but I know how I feel Merida.” He pulled her closer to him and leaned his forehead against hers as he gazed into her pale blue eyes. “I don’t love you because of some spell,” he said softly, “I love you for who you are.” Without a word Merida leaned forward and kissed him softly upon the cheek. She pulled away slightly and smiled up at him warmly. </p><p>“I love ye for who ye are as well,” she replied softly. Hiccup smiled back at her with pure love in his deep green eyes. He leaned forward slowly and captured her lips once more in a sweetly passionate kiss. For a moment all the questions and all the obstacles faded to the background and it was only Hiccup and Merida and the blossoming love between them. As Hiccup pulled away from her slightly he couldn’t help but to smile. Finally he knew where he stood, and he knew where he was always meant to be. Inadvertently his mother’s previous words suddenly flashed through his mind. <br/>…<br/>“Stoick told me that someday when we had a son, he would pass it on to him as well when the time came." She carefully lifted the chain over her head, she then handed the pendent over to Hiccup.</p><p>"Maybe that time is now," Valka smiled with tear filled eyes." Hiccup held the pendent carefully in his hands gazing at it intensely. He was unable to fathom this tangible evidence of his dream.</p><p>"But I don't love anyone," Hiccup said solemnly.</p><p>"Not yet," Valka replied, "but maybe this dream of yours signifies the start of your journey. Maybe it's time to start looking for whoever it is you're meant to be with; your soul mate." <br/>…<br/>Hiccup chuckled slightly under his breath as the memory ran through his mind. Merida smiled up at him curiously. </p><p>“What is it,” she asked. Hiccup continued to smile as he shook his head. </p><p>“It’s just…what my mother said before I left Berk,” Hiccup replied, “after the hard time I gave her about it all; turns out she was right about everything.”</p><p>“Why Hiccup, ye wouldn’t be going on about all that talk of yer dreams bein’ a sign to find yer true love now are ye,” Merida questioned haughtily. Hiccup chuckled in spite of himself. </p><p>“As a matter of fact,” Hiccup smiled as he leaned slightly closer to her, “that’s exactly what I’m going on about.”</p><p>“Is that so,” Merida replied as she took a slight step back teasingly, “and here I thought ye didn’t believe in such things as true love, or soulmates.” Hiccup smirked at her haughty response. </p><p>“What,” Hiccup scoffed, “of course, I believe in true love.” Merida crossed her arms over her chest and smirked up at him. </p><p>“I mean, I...I may have, ya know, lost my faith in it just a little,” Hiccup reiterated, “but then I met this amazing girl.” </p><p>“Oh, ye did, did ye,” Merida questioned in amusement. Hiccup smiled as he reached for her arm and gently pulled her back to him. </p><p>“She challenged nearly every excuse I tried to make,” Hiccup continued, “she told me like it is, often and without holding back...whether I liked it or not. I mean, she was downright pushy at times.” Merida rolled her eyes at his comment as she pulled away from him in slight annoyance. Hiccup smirked at her reaction. </p><p>“And when I say pushy,” Hiccup went on, “I mean, not like a little pushy... like really pushy, I mean, she has to be one of the pushiest people I’ve ever met. Like on a scale of one to ten...she has to be like, oh, I don’t know an eleven maybe...or maybe a twelve even.” Merida turned back and glared at him. </p><p>“No, no, I apologize, I’m exaggerating a bit,” Hiccup went on, “she’s not a twelve, I mean she’s close though...I’m gonna say more like an eleven and a half.”</p><p>“Hiccup,” Merida cried out indignantly as she slapped him on the bicep. </p><p>“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Hiccup chuckled, “well about the pushy part anyway...sort of.” Merida rolled her eyes and groaned. He sighed in contentment as he gazed at her. </p><p>“Okay seriously though,” Hiccup replied as he reached out and took both her hands in his. He leaned forward and gazed at her lovingly causing Merida to blush slightly. “You renewed my faith, Merida. You convinced me to open my heart and take a real chance again. You are all I want, and all I need.” He brought his hand to her face and gently rested it upon her cheek as he gazed deep into her blue eyes. Merida held her breath as she gazed back at him. </p><p>“Yer all I’ve ever wanted,” she replied with genuine emotion in her voice, “ye see me, the real me, and ye love me regardless of all my flaws and all my difficulties...no one has ever taken the time to know me like ye have.” Hiccup grinned at her answer. </p><p>“It’s not hard,” Hiccup replied, “to see the kind of person you are in here Merida.” He gently pointed to her heart. Merida smiled warmly up at him as he repeated the very words that she’d said to him not so long ago. </p><p>“I certainly don’t have to look very hard to see how amazing you are,” Hiccup went on, “or how much you mean to me.” He leaned forward once more pressing his lips firmly to hers. As the two slowly began to lose themselves in yet another passionate kiss they were suddenly distracted by the distinct sound of murmuring coming from only a few feet away. They simultaneously turned toward the sound only to be greeted by the familiar blue glow of a will o’ the wisp. </p><p>“A wisp,” they whispered in unison as they gazed at the glowing orb in surprise. Merida and Hiccup turned back to each other and smiled. Hiccup held his hand out in front of her invitingly. </p><p>“We should follow it,” Hiccup urged. Merida smiled as she slipped her hand in his. </p><p>“Aye,” Merida replied enthusiastically, “let’s go.”</p>
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